Dawn of Darkness
by LinkXZ
Summary: Part 1 of a 3 part story. Dawn of Darkness follows the path of a new hero, with older ones leading the way. Zeke, the prince of Hyrule, must go on a journey to discover the truth about an ancient rumor in order to stop a coming evil.
1. Chapter 1: The Warning

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Legend of Zelda, but the main character and many others are original creations of mine. Furthermore, this story is in no relation to the events taking place in Wind Waker.

Chapter 1: The Warning

A youth with red hair sat in his boat looking at the rising sun just like he had many times before. He shaded his emerald green eyes from the bright light with his hand as he looked out at the ocean around him. The pure beauty around him brought a smile to his lips.

The summer was just coming to an end. The heat would be less intense and the winds would start to blow. With autumn on the horizon, the sense of responsibility was starting to come back. It was for this reason that the youth went out onto the ocean in his little boat.

Despite being the prince of Hyrule, Zeke was often given a sizable workload during the first weeks of autumn to help prepare for the colder seasons, usually chopping wood or hanging drapes in doorways to keep heat from escaping the many rooms of the castle. It was detestable work, especially for one of his standing. As a prince, he was entitled to a certain amount of respect, however no one ever showed him any. After all, if the queen was going to treat him poorly, then logic showed that it was all right for the rest of Hyrule to do so as well. Queen Zelda may have been his mother, but she hardly acted like one when it came to her eldest child.

Perhaps it was out of embarrassment, but Zelda frequently gave Zeke tasks that kept him out of sight and out of trouble. In the past he had gotten into some situations that had brought shame upon his name, and this was a blemish that could not be related to the queen in any way or the people's opinion of their leader could be tarnished as well. Not that he ever intentionally did anything to anger his mother. Even though his feelings for the woman were cold, she was still his mother and he did not want to make her angry. Deep down, he only wanted her approval.

However, growing up under the circumstances he was in, it was not easy to please everyone, especially when no one particularly liked him. Zeke liked to blame the conditions of his birth, being the bastard son of the queen. No one but Zelda knew who the father was, and it was not rare for the young prince to spend entire afternoons trying to figure it out on his own. On this particular afternoon, he was pondering this issue, wondering if it were at all possible for his mother to tell him if he asked her.

Zeke felt a tug on his fishing pole, momentarily distracting him from his thoughts, so he sat up to see if he had snagged a fish, but when he reeled in his line there was nothing on the hook except for a piece of seaweed. It was disappointing, and only went to damage the prince's determination. Since he had started fishing at the crack of dawn, he had not caught a single fish. Sneaking out was an act he would usually be punished for, but if he managed to bring home something useful he would be pardoned and his day would shine with hope that nothing unfortunate would happen. Much to his dismay, Zeke had to give up if he wanted to get home before the noon meal.

It was odd that his catch bucket was empty. On most mornings where he barely caught anything he would at least have one or two fish to show that he at least tried, only rarely coming up with nothing. Peering over the edge of his boat, he wondered if a fishing party had already cast their nets into this part of the ocean, but then he saw something that he had not seen ever before. The water beneath the surface was moving in a different direction in a rapid torrent, sweeping everything up that was unlucky enough to be in the way.

He could see fish and other things being carried away by the rough current, and he knew this was why his bucket was empty. Silently cursing his luck, he pulled out his map to look for another area that usually had large schools of fish just waiting for his line to be cast. A splash of water came up over the side of his boat and fell on his map, ruining the parchment instantly. "Damn it!" he shouted, tossing the soaked paper into the ocean. "That thing was brand new." Falling backwards, Zeke stared up at the sky forlornly. With no catch and no map he was surely in for a stern reprimand from both the cooks and the archivists.

Another wave came over the side of the boat and fell on Zeke, chilling his skin instantly. Sitting up to curse at the ocean, Zeke finally saw what was causing the irregular ocean currents and sending waves over the side of his boat. A whirlpool had appeared while he had been fishing, and it must have grown in size while he had his attention diverted. Now the maelstrom could be heard, howling like a malicious beast ready to devour anything within reach.

Realizing that it was dangerous to be where he was, Zeke started setting up his sail, but a wave caused his boat to shift violently and he fell over. With his arms wrapped around his pitiful mast, the prince stared helplessly at an oncoming wave that towered above him like a wall of death. Zeke let out a pitiful cry as the water fell on top of him and his boat, crushing the wooden vessel and sending the prince into the ocean.

Zeke had always thought the view of the sky from below water was unusual, but this time he had little interest in staying where he was. Kicking and struggling with his arms to be free of the suffocating world he was in, he thrust his head out of the water and took a deep gulp of air. The water all around him was thrashing like a beheaded snake, pulling him back under so he had to work his way back to the surface. Again and again Zeke struggled to stay afloat while the water threw him around like a rag doll.

"Grab on!" someone shouted from above Zeke.

Zeke could not see who it was, but they were offering him help and he was not about to refuse. Reaching as high as he could, he felt someone close around his wrist, and then he was being pulled out of the water. Shaking his head and rubbing his eyes with his free hand, he looked up to see who is savior was, but could not tell exactly if it was even human. The salt water had blurred his vision too much and his eyes kept watering from the irritation. He waited until he landed on a cliff before trying to see what his saving grace had been.

When his vision cleared, he was shocked to see an owl as tall as he was standing before him. Falling over in shock, he pointed a shaky finger at the bird and shouted, "What the heck are you?"

The owl cocked its head to the side and regarded Zeke with a curious gaze. "My name is Kaepora Gaebora. I am a wind sage from the village of Zephyr," the owl said, preening his feathers as if the activity were more interesting than the prince. "You're lucky I came by when I did, or you would be floating off to the afterlife right about now."

"Zephyr?" Zeke asked, clutching a handful of grass to steady himself. "I know about that village. That's where the knight Sir Calintz is from. Do you know him?" The giant owl made no attempt to answer the question, making Zeke wonder if the knight had been exiled from his village. But that was not possible, for Sir Calintz had only just returned from a week long leave that he spent at home in Zephyr. Ripping the grass up from the ground, Zeke said, with as much authority as he could, "Answer me, Wind Sage. What brings you this far from your home?"

Flapping his wings to dry them, Kaepora yawned and wrapped his wings around his body. "First thing's first." A gust of wind swirled around the giant bird, whipping up dust that made Zeke raise a hand to guard his eyes, and, when it was over, a man in a brown cloak that looked like feathers stood before the prince. His eyes were gray, and they were full of wisdom. There was no doubt that this man was who he said he was. "Allow me to formally introduce myself, young prince of Hyrule." With a deep bow, the man said, "My name is Kaepora Gaebora Yuji, Elder Wind Sage of Zephyr, Shaman of Knowledge."

Rising to his feet, Zeke returned the bow. "I am Prince Zeke, son of Zelda, and a disgrace to Hyrule," he said, adding his own embellishment to the title. The sage was not amused by the self-proclamation.

"I bring news," Kaepora said, waving a hand to indicate the ocean to the right. "The flood is over. Take a look. The waters are receding and soon the land of Hyrule will be as it was."

Walking over to the edge of the cliff, Zeke looked out at the ocean and saw that it was indeed dropping in level. It was a spectacle to behold. However, Zeke was frightened by it. "Why is it doing that?" he asked, stepping away from the cliff face that was getting taller and taller with every passing second. "What evil is at work here?"

Crossing his arms, Kaepora smirked and shook his head, amazed by the youth's lack of reasoning. "Evil caused the flood, child. If it is receding then logic says that evil has been vanquished." Walking to the edge of the cliff, he turned and gave Zeke a mysterious smile. "Though one evil has been destroyed, I foresee another. Be on your guard, prince." Jumping off of the cliff, he resumed his birdlike form and flew off into the sky.

Zeke watched the owl until it disappeared from his sight, then he decided it was time to return home, a task that would take him a significant amount of time on foot. With a deep sigh, he realized that he would miss lunch, and if he were absent from the table that he would get a swift kick in the head from his mother for inconveniencing everyone. "I sure hope they'll let me off this time," he said to himself, more to keep himself company than anything. "I could have died today. That should be a good enough excuse for being late."

***********

"Hiya there, Zeke!" said a young voice as Zeke entered through the front door. A little girl ran from inside the room and went airborne when she was a few feet from the prince, flying towards him like a loosed arrow. He caught her and spun her around a couple times before setting her back down on her feet, making her laugh excitedly.

"What's going on, Faye?" he asked, steadying his sister as her dizziness was about to make her fall over.

Grabbing onto Zeke's arm for support, the small girl pointed at a box on a short table by a couch and said, "You got a parcel from somewhere far away." Her matter of fact tone was enough to betray a secret she had hidden inside of her head.

"Oh really," he said, with a smirk. "What's inside it?" He dropped down to his knees and raised an eyebrow, an action that usually meant he suspected something he could not see in front of him.

Looking down at her feet, trying to look innocent, Faye mumbled, "I don't know." Her voice was enough to give away the truth to Zeke. "I was told it was for your birthday, so I didn't open it."

The prince laughed, giving her a pat on the head. "Let me guess, Roland told you not to tell me what's inside?" She nodded, a small smile playing at her lips. Zeke then reached forward and lifted her chin so she was looking at him. "You sure a few rupees won't loosen your tongue?"

She shook her head and giggled. "I know how much you've got in your wallet and it's not enough." Then Faye then ran out into the hall outside, laughing with glee. "I know what Zeke got for his birthday!" she shouted as she ran through the castle.

Zeke chased after her, letting her stay a good three meters ahead of him. "I'm going to get you, and when I do it'll mean the end of you," he taunted in a scary voice. Faye yelped and ran faster, making Zeke worry about her tripping.

"You're not going to catch me!" she screamed, afraid of what her brother might do to her. Turning down another corridor, she found a statue of someone she had been told was significant in Hyrule's history. She had no idea why the man was important, so she had no qualms about using the statue to escape from her brother. Using a skill that she mastered over her eight years of life, she climbed up the statue and sat on the "man's" shoulders.

"Faye! Get off of Azel's statue!" Zeke shouted, knowing that if it broke he would be the one getting blamed. "Azel was an important person, and it's disrespectful of you to treat his memorial in such a way."

The little princess stuck her tongue out at her brother. "You're just saying that so I'll get down. I'm not falling for it."

Zeke continued to plead with his sister. The day had started out bad enough with his life being endangered by water and being saved by a giant talking bird, he was not going to let his little sister make it worse by breaking the statue of Hyrule's most famous knight. "Faye, please. I promise, I won't do anything to you, just please get down from the statue before you break it and I get blamed."

Her brother never lied to her, so she started to climb down from the statue. "You don't have time to bug me anyway," she said regrettably. "Mom wanted to see you about something."

"What?"

She nodded and relayed the message; "Mom said that when I saw you I was to tell you to go to the throne room immediately. She wouldn't tell me what for though."

Zeke motioned for Faye to climb onto his back and said, "Well, let's not keep her waiting any longer than we need to." The girl did as she was told and jumped onto her brother. After making sure she would stay in play, Zeke carried her down the hall towards the throne room.


	2. Chapter 2: Your Mission

Chapter 2: Your Mission

The queen was sleeping soundly on her throne when Zeke entered the grand throne room with Faye on his back. It was not uncommon for Zelda to be found this way, for her work was exhausting, but this day her reasons for being tired were not related to work.

Zeke "galloped" up to his mother. Making a bad imitation of a horse noise, he put Faye down and slowly approached the throne. He noticed that his mother was asleep and sighed. Whenever he had to wake her up it meant that he was going to get an earful for being rude for rousing her from a dream she was having about a son that was better than he was. Resisting the urge to leave, he sighed and placed his hand on her shoulder and started to lightly shake her. "Mom," he said, trying to keep his voice low so as not to hurt her ears. "Mom, wake up."

Zelda opened her eyes and let loose a yelp, "What are _you_ doing here?" she shouted shakily, retreating as far back into her throne as she could.

"Uh.... you wanted to see me?" Zeke replied, a little confused. _Must have been one hell of a dream_.

Zelda rubbed her eyes with her fists and took another look at her son, positive she was seeing wrong. "Oh, Zeke, I'm sorry I thought you were someone else for a moment there."

"Okay," Zeke said slowly. "Why did you want to see me?"

Zelda sat up straight and stretched out her back, ceasing when three loud pops came from the strain. "Where were you today?" she asked after she stifled a yawn and looked around to see if anyone else had been around to see her asleep. "Sir Calintz wanted you to help him down on the training grounds today. I thought that would be something you would want to do."

Scratching the back of his head, Zeke looked away and said, "I went out fishing this morning."

"What took you so long to get back home? You're always back before lunch." Giving her son a long look, she noticed that he looked a little disheveled and there was an exhaustion behind his eyes that betrayed that he had been through some strenuous activity. "Are you okay, Zeke? You look tired."

Taking his mother's hand, he led her to a window and pointed at to where the ocean had been. "Something happened involving the smashing of my boat and a giant talking owl from Zephyr named Kaepora Gaebora."

Zelda froze up as she saw that the ocean was gone. Holding onto the windowsill for support, she gasped and stared out at the scenery. "This is impossible." Stepping away from the window, she told Zeke to go get some lunch and to return after the evening meal. As her two children were leaving, Zelda heard Faye say, "You scared mom." This made her chuckle. The thought of how cute her daughter was flashed briefly in her mind before she returned her attention to the scenery outside of the window and frowned, clearly thinking of something deeply.

When Zeke returned to the throne room that evening, his mother was waiting expectantly with the king. "Zeke, are you feeling better?" Roland asked, having heard about the incident on the ocean. "Ocean waters can be harsh. You're lucky you made it out alive. When I was a fisherman I encountered some serious waters, and I can sympathize with you."

"I'm fine, Roland," Zeke murmured with a scowl. Once again his mother's husband was trying to win him over, but the so-called king was not the kind of man Zeke wanted as a father. He was lazy and irresponsible. It was a wonder how the man was considered a war hero. Turning his attention to his mother, Zeke asked, "What do you want?"

"I need to ask a favor of you, m'boy," she said, crossing her legs and resting her chin in one of her hands. "As you know from first hand evaluation, the land of Hyrule has been rid of the flood waters that have plagued us since I was your age. While I'm sure that you will want to go exploring in this new world, I need you to go to the old castle and retrieve something from the armory."

"Why? Won't all the weapons and armor be rusted and useless?" Zeke asked, crossing his arms defiantly.

Zelda flicked him on the forehead, "What have I told you about jumping ahead of me?" She flicked him again when he shrugged and pretended like he had no idea.

He sighed and mumbled, "Don't do it." The flick was something he had never liked. It was a punishment he had received since he was a child, and sometimes it involved his nose. Just the thought was enough to make him bring a hand up to guard his nose, disguising the action as a scratch to avoid getting odd stares from his mom and stepfather.

"That's right," she said looking into her son's eyes sternly. Holding his gaze, she made sure he understood that what she was about to say was important before speaking. "There is a box I need you to recover. It's made of mahogany… um… well it will look like a reddish brown in color. It holds something of great importance."

Zeke stared at her and raised a finger to slow her down, trying to think of some reason why he would be the worse choice to set this task to. Unable to complete a thought in time, his mother turned him around and gave him a little push to get him moving. Defeated, he walked out of the throne room and headed for his family's apartment.

Before he was completely out of earshot, he heard Roland say to his mother, "Are you sure about this?" The doors were closed before he could hear his mother's response.

Zeke flopped onto his bed angrily, "What does she think I am, a mule? A servant? When will she realize I'm her son?" He put his face in his hands and thought, _Why does she hate me so much?_

Faye walked in with a box in her arms as long as she was tall, making it awkward to carry for it appeared to weigh enough to put strain in the little arms. "Here yah go, bro," she said, handing him the box. Zeke looked at it and set it beside him. "Don't you want to know what is inside?" Faye asked, giving him an interested gaze.

"No," he said flatly, falling to his back and staring at the ceiling.

"Well...why not?" she asked, exasperated. Climbing up onto his bed she softly shook him, trying to put some sense into him.

"Because he doesn't want to ruin the surprise," said a tall man in the doorway.

Turning her gaze to the king, Faye's eyes lit up and she became beyond excited. "Daddy!" she shouted as she jumped off her brother's bed and into the king's arms.

"How is my baby girl?" the king asked as he embraced her lovingly. Watching this made Zeke sick to his stomach. He could never handle affection well.

"I'm great and I have loads to tell you about what I've discovered today! Like I found this slug that looked like Zeke, and I also found an ant that was the size of an apple!"

"Really? Well I just can't wait to hear about all of that, but first I would like to talk to your brother in private."

"Okay," Faye mumbled, walking out of the room and closing the door behind her.

Zeke looked at the king blankly. "Hello, your majesty."

Roland shook his head slowly and sighed. "When are you going to call me father?" Ever since he became king, his only true goal was to gain a close bond with his stepchild, but the boy was not interested in having him as a father and closed his heart to anyone and everyone. All the men that Zeke had ever looked up to were either gone or became too busy to spend much time with him.

"What do you want?" Zeke asked, ignoring the question he would not answer no matter how many times he was asked. The answer was so obvious that he thought it was stupid that people had to ask. Roland was not his father, so it was inappropriate for him to be called so.

Roland clapped his hands together and tried to smile. "I'm going to get right to the point then. One of Hyrule's oldest traditions involving royalty is the forging of a sword that is to be presented to the upcoming king or queen. I commissioned a blade from the greatest smiths in all the land just for you."

"So?" Zeke said, undoing his stubby ponytail and shaking his head to free his hair. "I already know about that custom. I've been expecting a sword for a while now." Retying his ponytail, he stood up and started to arrange some things on his desk to avoid looking at the man.

"Oh." Roland was caught off guard by this, but replaced his shock with a smile. "Well, then you should know that Sir Terence is expecting to see you down on his training grounds. He will teach you the basics of swordplay."

Zeke said nothing as he pulled a sheet of parchment over to him so he could start writing something. It was hard for him to not reply to the man standing in his room, but he was not interested in anything the man had to say and just wanted to be left alone. "If that is all then I must politely ask you to take your leave. I have to write an apology letter to the man who rented me my boat. Then I have to go down to the kitchens and explain why I failed to bring home any fish."

"Right. Well, good-bye then." The king left looking slightly disappointed, wondering if Zeke would even open the box if he knew it was from him. Faye was waiting for him on the other side of the door with a look on her face that said she had been eavesdropping. "Do you think he'll look inside the box?"

Faye scrunched her face in thought. "Well…I don't know. Zeke is in a bad mood because of mom, and you know how he is when he and mom get on each other's nerves."

He sighed and picked her up, placing her on his shoulders. "Let's hope that he does."

Zeke waited until his door had closed again before opening the box. While he thought he would dislike it just because it was Roland who had gotten it for him, he could not deny that he did feel rather curious about what the sword looked like. To his surprise, the blade within the box was a magnificent piece of art that was as deadly as it was beautiful. It was reflective of the sword that Sir Calintz wore with the hilt a foot in length and the blade another four feet long, a true long sword. But the sword itself was surprisingly light. To complement the well-crafted steel of the blade, the hilt was in the shape of a dragonhead with the blade coming out of its mouth. Zeke looked at it in awe, gently running a finger over the head of the dragon, admiring the intricacy of the gilding.

With an ashamed smirk, Zeke pulled the sword and its sheath out of the box and belted on the sword. "Not bad at all, Roland," he said as he walked out his door and headed to the training grounds.


	3. Chapter 3: A Lesson In Swordplay

Chapter 3: A Lesson in Swordplay

Zeke looked at his sparring partner with a small grin. _This'll be easy_, he thought to himself, but another voice in his mind said, _Do not get cocky_. But Zeke ignored it.

His partner was wearing a helmet to guard his face, making Zeke curious as to whom he was fighting. He was left handed, which presented a problem the prince could see, but he thought that it would not make too big of a hitch. His partner twirled his sword and waited for the instructor to say begin. Sir Terence, the instructor, looked at Zeke's stance and held up his hands and said, "Zeke, what are you doing?"

Zeke stared dumbly at the instructor. "Uh, I'm going to spar?"

Terence sighed and threw his hands into the air. "I think it's painfully obvious that you've never used a blade before. Let me explain..."

Zeke listened intently as Terence went through what the stances were and what the strikes were. Seeing that Zeke had a sword similar to the windy knight's, Terence was teaching him the style that Calintz used. It used quick footwork with full body motions that maximized hitting power. It was a style that had only one master.

After Terence finished explaining, Zeke bounced up from the ground and assumed a better stance. His blade seemed to shimmer in the sunlight, dazzling his eyes with its radiant light. One thing he just could not get passed was how amazing his sword was. Even on the way down to the training grounds he had drawn the blade multiple times just to stare at the gorgeous weapon.

"Zeke, pay attention, I'm going to start your spar," said Terence, snapping Zeke out of his admiration of his blade. "Are you ready?" The question was said with a fearful tone, for Terence truly feared for the prince's health.

Zeke and his partner both nodded and Terence held his hand up, shaking his head. He gave the two some time to mentally prepare themselves before bringing his hand down and saying, "Start!"

Zeke and his partner circled for a moment, but feeling impatient, Zeke launched at his opponent. The nameless partner parried the strike with such ease that it was humiliating for the prince. Approaching the situation from a different angle, he attacked low and faked into a downward slash, but he felt a shoulder dig into his chest and he was thrown back. He began to realize that being a beginning swordsman, he would be unable to beat his opponent. _He's only seeing what I can do, _he thought. _Well show him what you are made of_,the second voice said encouragingly.

Zeke grunted as he ran at his partner, twirling his blade. Slightly crazed by his unsuccessful attempts to best his opponent, he attacked with made up strike combinations that almost felt like they were coming to him naturally. His partner was caught off guard, backing away from the onslaught slowly while trying to avoid Zeke's flailing blade. Seeing this as his chance, he smirked and cried out as he continued his assault.

Down slash, right slice, spin into a left side feint and come up from below. Come from upper right and thrust. His opponent parried the strike, but Zeke had a counter for it. By spinning in the direction that his sword was misdirected to, he used his momentum to send a strong back handed slash at the other guy that knocked him off balance, giving Zeke time to regain his own balance.

Since both needed to regain their footing, they both had a chance to recover before the other could attack. Gripping his sword tightly, Zeke waited. His opponent was not as patient and rushed in at full speed. The offending blade was swung horizontally, so Zeke fell into a backwards roll. His opponent was still moving forward from momentum, so when his hands touched the grass, he pushed up and kicked the guy under the chin. Then, as soon as his feet touched the ground, he dashed forward and struck his opponents helm with the flat of his blade.

Clearly, this soldier was not used to fighting someone who left himself open only to unleash a devastating tactic at an unexpected moment. Before he had a chance to recover from the strike, he was forced to block a downward slash that stopped just inches from his face guard. From there, it became a battle of strength. Their blades were locked together, and they both knew that if they attempted to break away it would leave them open for retaliation.

Terence laughed from the side, clearly impressed by the ingenuity that he was seeing from Zeke. "Bit of a handful isn't he, Maiya?"

Zeke strength faltered, giving his opponent a chance to break the lock and punch him in the face, sending him sprawling on the ground. "You're a girl?" Zeke shouted, his voice cracking in mid sentence. His eyes widened in shock, old memories rising to mock him as blood began to trickle from the corner of his mouth. Maiya had split his lip, freeing his blood to flow out of him.

Maiya threw off her helm and laughed at Terence, inadvertently informing Zeke that she had a rather close relationship with the instructor. "Sir Terence, I was just waiting for him to falter. He was swinging so wildly it was only a matter of time before he lost his balance or over compensated. As you know I have dealt with worse."

Zeke stared at her disbelievingly. _That pink hair, and scarlet eyes. It has to be her, _he thought as he bent his head and started making circles in the dirt next to him. "I can't believe _you_ gave me this much trouble," he said quietly, keeping his eyes averted so no one could see the bitter resentment he was feeling.

"Don't feel bad Zeke," Terence said, still chuckling. "Maiya is my star pupil. It's the sole reason as to why the queen requested she go with you on your mission. I thought that it would be good for you two to get to know each other before you set off."

"What?" Zeke stood up so fast that his knees popped, causing him to falter slightly. "My mother _chose_ someone to go with me?" he asked, his eyes falling on Sir Terence.

"Well, yeah. Come on, Zeke. Did you really think that she was going to send you by yourself? That would be suicide."

Zeke thrust his sword into its sheath, staring at the ground darkly. "I don't work well with people." He walked off into the setting sun, his mind racing as his feet carried him out of the training grounds. Deciding he wanted to be alone, he took a turn close to the outer wall of the castle, squeezing into a crevice that led to the cliff side of New Castle Town. _Why would she do such a thing? Doesn't she trust me_?

"You were not all that eager to go to begin with," the second voice murmured in a matter of fact tone.

"Who are you?!" Zeke screamed at the second voice. "Why are you in my head?!"

"I am not in your head, just by it," the voice replied.

Zeke looked around him and found a little shimmering ball of light floating by his head. He quickened his pace, taking a deep, calming breath as he followed his secret path. "What are you?" he asked, finally out of his shouting fit.

The ball with wings made a weird musical noise that seemed to soothe Zeke's mood. "I am a guardian fairy from the forest. I was sent by the great Deku Tree to aid you."

Zeke stopped, finally reaching his refuge, a small area with a little tree that overlooked the land of Hyrule. He sat cross-legged on the grass next to the lone tree with the fairy floating by his face. Now stationary, he examined the ball curiously. Underneath the light that seemed to come from the fairy's core, he could faintly make out a body that gave the fairy a rather human like appearance with the exception of the wings that grew out from its shoulder blades. "A fairy?" he mused. "It must be my lucky day if a guardian fairy has come to me. What's your name?"

Again the fairy made its musical noise and said, "My name is Sakura."

Zeke looked at the setting sun and sighed. Just the day before, he had sat in this exact spot and stared at the sunset, accenting the ocean waters. Now the only thing he could see below the cliff face was prairie land that went farther than his eyes could see. "According to the stories I've heard about forest fairies, you're going to be my constant companion from now on. Am I right?"

Sakura landed on his shoulder and made herself comfortable, crossing her legs and leaning against his neck. "That is correct as far as I know. There have been many stories among my kind that tell of fairies that went off with legendary heroes and helped save the land from complete darkness. The great Deku Tree told me that there was a young soul here at the castle that was in need of my assistance. He said that this young man was about to embark on a big quest that would determine the fate of Hyrule."

"I don't know about a fate changing quest," Zeke said, amused. "But I am going on a mission to recover something from the old castle that is up north. However, I've heard that the Deku Tree is wise beyond any other, so I guess I need to become accustomed to seeing you around." He reached into a large hole at the base of the tree and pulled out a guitar that he began to tune and then play. "Well, Sakura, my name is Zeke. It's nice to meet you." Together they watched the sunset, a beautiful Hyrulian sunset.

Zeke had stayed by the tree for a long while after the sun set. Playing his guitar, he smiled as Sakura added her own little musical humming to the guitar chords. It astounded him that her simple noises sounded so pretty, however he could imagine that the noises would be a little less pleasant if Sakura became distressed.

There was a loud crack as someone or something behind him stepped on a stick, alerting Zeke to his or her presence. He jumped up and turned around, drawing his sword and accidentally throwing an unprepared Sakura into the air above him. His face hardened when he saw Maiya standing before him, waving with a timid smile. The silence that followed allowed him to make a few observations that told him it was okay to lower his sword. She had abandoned her armor and wore her long pink hair in a high ponytail. Most importantly, and to Zeke's relief, she had left her sword behind.

"What is it you want?" he asked coldly, his voice lined with ice. He sheathed his sword, but his glare was enough to make Maiya shift her feet nervously.

"I wanted to talk to you, your highness," she said, keeping her eyes on the prince. "I thought that you might still be mad about earlier today, and I didn't know if it was my fault or not so I wanted to apologize if it was." She looked up at Zeke, her soft crimson eyes glistening in the moonlight.

Sakura flew up to Zeke and smacked him on the ear; angered by the way she was flung into the air. She made a show of fixing what Zeke thought might be hair before turning to Maiya. "Come on Zeke, do not be rude," she said as she flew over to Maiya. "Hello, I am Sakura."

Maiya gasped. "A fairy, my word, an actual fairy." She giggled and let Sakura land on her finger. Sakura started to spin and jump on the offered finger, going into a ballet routine. "Such a pretty being," Maiya commented, earning a noticeable smile from the miniature girl.

"Sit if it pleases you," Zeke mumbled, his voice full of irritation. He dropped to the ground and returned to playing his guitar, ignoring the girl as best he could. It was bad enough she had to humiliate him the first time he picked up a sword, but now he was being forced to put up with her since she obviously wanted to speak to him.

Maiya took a seat next to him and listened to him play. She found his music rather enjoyable, unlike the other forms of music meant to seduce her into intimate relationships with some of the boys from the Harper Hall. "That is beautiful," she said, a breeze blowing her hair back. "You show true mastery of your instrument to be able to produce such emotion through your music. I had no idea the prince was so talented."

Zeke turned his head to her, his face blank. "That means a lot to me since I'm self taught," he said calmly. He began to feel bad about his behavior, seeing that Maiya was such a gentle person off of the sparring ground. "You must have followed me. This place is hard to find."

Maiya shrugged and watched Sakura walk up her arm and sit on her shoulder. "You weren't that hard to find since you were screaming like a lunatic." She started to laugh, but Zeke remained stoic and ended her moment of mirth early. Hoping to lighten the mood, she untied a small bag from her belt and set it on the ground. "I brought food if you're hungry."

"I'm not hungry," Zeke lied, but his stomach growled and Maiya tossed a roll at him. He caught the roll and nibbled at it cautiously.

"Liars never prosper, prince," Maiya said seriously. "I don't like it when people lie to me, so it would be in your best interests if you remain honest with me at all times. Just keep that in mind."

"Well then I hope it doesn't offend you that I'll openly admit that I take it as a blow to my pride that you have been selected to accompany me on this upcoming mission."

Maiya looked away and bit into an apple, hiding her discomfort. To divert from this topic, she pointed out at the scenery and said, "Can you believe that there was an ocean out there this morning?"

This time Zeke smirked, showing a positive emotion for the first time in front of the girl. "I was in the ocean when the level started to drop." With his hands he showed where he was in relativity to the large maelstrom that had appeared. "Because of the receding waters, a giant whirlpool formed about twenty yards from my boat. It was maybe fifty feet across. That thing would have killed me if I had been unlucky enough to get caught in its pull."

"Yeah right," Maiya said, giving the prince a smack on the back. "Didn't I just tell you not to lie to me?"

"I'm not lying. My boat got crushed underneath a monster wave and I almost drowned." Maiya reached over to thump him on the head, but he caught her by the wrist and held her hand off. "Even my mother believed me when I said that," he murmured. Releasing her hand, he sighed and rubbed his forehead tiredly. "The woman who flicks me on the nose whenever I shrug believed me when I told her that a giant talking owl saved my life this morning, and yet I have a partner for my upcoming recovery mission."

"Why does it bother you so much?" Sakura asked, floating down from Maiya's shoulder to land next to a banana that was longer than she was tall. When she failed to peel the fruit on her own, Zeke picked it up, peeled it, and took off a small piece that he handed to the fairy. "Thank you," she said, returning to Maiya's shoulder.

Zeke looked down at his hands, frowning. "It bothers me because of the lack of trust my mother has for me."

"She trusts you, your highness," said Maiya reassuringly. The look Zeke gave her made her wish she could take back her words.

"No she doesn't," he muttered. "If she trusted me, then she wouldn't have hand selected the best student in the military academy to come with me. If anything she wishes that I'll die and you'll be able to fulfill the mission."

"How can you say that?" Maiya asked explosively. "You make it sound like she doesn't love you."

"She doesn't. She said so herself. If you asked her, she would tell you." Zeke balled his hands into fists and closed his eyes. "In case you didn't know, my younger sister is the heir to the throne. Not me."

Maiya had no idea what to say. She was almost relieved when Zeke stood up to leave. "Your majesty, regardless of how your mother feels about you, I will make it my personal goal to make sure that you come out of this mission on top." She had hoped that this would be a comfort to him, but it only seemed to add fuel to the fire.

"We leave early tomorrow," he said, trying his best to remain polite to the girl he was going to be traveling with for the next few weeks. "Sleep well tonight." Before he left, he mumbled the words, "Call me Zeke."

"You too, your high…Zeke." Maiya watched him leave, feeling saddened. "You'd better go with him, Sakura." She noticed that the fairy was lying on her shoulder in a position that would have told her that the fairy was asleep if she had not risen to her feet and jumped into the air.

"I probably should," Sakura said with a yawn. She waved a good bye to Maiya and flew over to Zeke, landing on his head. "She is pretty for a human." Maiya saw Zeke flick the fairy off of his shoulder before the two disappeared from sight.


	4. Chapter 4: Time To Go

Chapter 4: Time to Go

Zeke slouched in his saddle astride his brown horse, lazily watching the sunrise just like he had done every morning for the passed three years. Normally he would be in his boat, but with the ocean gone he would have to find a new way to view his favorite event of day.

Floating by the prince's head, Sakura yawned and drooped her wings tiredly. "Why did we have to get up this early?" she asked groggily.

Zeke squinted against the sun and said, "To avoid a going away celebration." He turned his head when he heard another horse come up behind him and gave the horse's rider a quick salute. "Good morning, Maiya."

Maiya yawned and smiled at him. "And a good morning it is. It's so beautiful." Stretching her back, the girl said, "How long can we stay to watch this?"

Zeke felt that he could not relax until they passed through the castle gate, and even then not until he passed the town gate. "We leave now." Gigging his horse into a trot, he made a motion for Maiya to follow him. The sun was barely halfway over the horizon, so no one was awake except for farmers. He knew that the square would be empty, but it would be risky to go through there on account that the apprentice Harpers and Archivists would often run around early in the morning to knock on the doors of people they needed to get miscellaneous objects from. The only other option was going through backstreets, and that was even riskier.

"We'll have to go through the square," he said, even though he did not want to hear anyone say it. While he did not suspect a going away party of any sort, for that would be ridiculous, he did think that Roland would want to stop him before he left so he could give him some advice.

As they neared the first gate Zeke shifted his gaze nervously. _Only one more_, he thought. It was eerily quiet. Even when he had snuck out the previous morning he could hear some noises that hinted at a group of people working hard in their fields. Never had New Castle Town been so quiet that it was almost as if everyone had disappeared over night.

It was when they were passing through the castle gates that all the residents of the town jumped out and started cheering, congratulating the two for their bravery. After getting over the initial shock of having every resident of the town jump out and start shouting, Zeke hung his head and whispered, "I wanted to avoid this."

Queen Zelda walked over to him with a smile. "Did you seriously think you could get away without saying good bye?"

Maiya smiled, giving Zeke a happy glance. Behind the smile she was thinking that she knew there was no way his mother disliked him as much as he claimed, and that she was about to surprise her son.

"Be careful Zeke, and be wary at all times," Roland said sternly, offering his hand to Zeke.

Zeke frowned and ignored the hand. "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

The king stepped back and sighed, looking just as uncomfortable as Zeke.

Zelda walked up to her son and looked directly into his eyes, trying to relay a hidden message through the gesture. "Zeke, I…" she started to say, but cut herself off before she finished the sentence. Instead, she reached up with her hand and took her son's, squeezing it to get his attention. "I will await your return," she said so softly that it was possible she could have said more without it being heard. "Stay close to Maiya and be sure to return with that artifact. Don't overlook anything…"

Zeke looked away from the woman and pulled his hand out of hers, wondering why he had expected something else to fall from her lips. "Don't worry, mother, it will be returned to you," he growled, interrupting her in the middle of her sentence.

Zelda glared at him and walked away appearing hurt, leaving both Roland and Maiya to look at her disbelievingly and then at Zeke with sympathetic expressions. "Before you go," Roland, motioning for someone to approach. "There is a bit more you're going to need." Three of the townsfolk walked up and bowed. "These three came to me saying they bear gifts for you."

The first one was a tall and strong young lad who might have been a year or two older than Zeke. "I would be honored if you would take this and use it, your highness," he said as he handed Zeke a beautiful and well-made bow. "I made it for my craft master, but he passed away. But before he passed, he would always say that I would be prosperous and my work would be used by kings."

Zeke took the bow and carefully strapped it to his saddle. "I thank you," he said as he placed his hand on the lad's brow. "Upon my return I will come to you and tell you how good your work really is."

The second of the three was an old woman who had a sack slung on her back. "On every journey, one must eat," she said as she handed the sack to Maiya, who until now was not acknowledged. Again, Zeke thanked the person and turned his attention to the last person.

The third was a strange looking old man who was talking to the king. Zeke grunted to get the man's attention. The man turned to the king once more and, after getting a nod of approval, gazed upon Zeke with eyes that had seen many seasons. "Hello young one," he said, his voice raspy. "You do not know me, but I know you. Many years ago, your father entrusted me with this charm. He told me that if anything ever happened that I was to give it to you. He told me that it would protect you from harm." He held it up for Zeke, who took it and examined it curiously.

It was nothing more than a thin chain link necklace with the emblem of the Crimson Tears, a crescent moon with a tear inside of it, hanging from it. Zeke put it on and turned to thank the man, but he had vanished into the crowd. He looked at Roland and gave him a questioning glance, but the king only shrugged.

To his right, Zeke could hear Sir Terence talking to Maiya about taking unnecessary risks. She assured him that she would be safe and gave him a hug, which looked awkward due to her being on a horse. "Maiya, are you ready to go?" Zeke asked.

"Yeah, I am."

"I am too," Sakura commented, floating by his head.

The villagers said their good byes and the threesome left, Zeke and Sakura ahead of Maiya. The horses trotted out of the town's limits slowly, as if reluctant to go. Zeke turned around in his saddle and saw someone standing on one of the watchtowers, watching him leave. "Who is that?" he asked, but no one heard his question and it was soon forgotten.

"According to this map," Maiya said, distracting Zeke from his own thoughts. "The old castle is in the middle of Hyrule Field, but the new castle is located over here at the southeastern corner of the field on this high plateau here. I think if we follow along the edge of the forest and then head west when we near where the forest starts to climb into mountains then we'll run straight into the castle's eastern wall."

Zeke had to lean in order to see the map, and from what he could gather it was merely an older map with newer landmarks written upon it. "Can we really trust this map?" he asked skeptically. "No offense or anything, but this thing doesn't look like it should be in use."

Maiya gave him an understanding look and sighed. "It's all we have to go by for now. No one has been sent out to map out the land, so we'll have to assume that every thing is as it was." She rolled up the map and looked out at the land before them. "It's so strange. This land has been flooded since we were children, yet nothing seems to be damaged by water or anything."

This brought up a question inside Zeke's head. "Maiya, how old are you?"

"I'm seventeen and a half," she answered, returning the question. "You look a little on the young side."

Zeke felt his face flush when Maiya gave him a suggestive glance as if she were sizing him up. "Well, I'm sixteen, but I'll be seventeen soon," he said, regretting his choice to wear a baggy tunic. Unfortunately, he was just following some advice he had gotten from the leader of the Crimson Tears and made himself appear small in the process.

"What about Sakura?" Maiya looked over at the fairy and smiled. "How old are you, Sakura?"

Sakura looked over at Maiya and yawned. "I do not know. Guardian fairies are not born every day like you humans, so when one of us _is_ brought into existence we care a little more about the occasion than how old we all are. Not to mention fairies age at a different rate than humans. We can outlive humans by many centuries."

Maiya and Zeke looked at each other with blank expressions, both thinking the same thing. _Not exactly the answer I was looking for_.

The conversation died, but a new one started as they came up to the edge of the plateau that New Hyrule Town had been constructed upon. Curious as to see just how high they were, Zeke dismounted and walked to the edge of the plateau. As he stared down towards the world below, he took a deep breath and let it out in a shaky sigh. The plateau seemed to be an immeasurable distance from the bottom, and there was no path for any to use to reach the bottom. "How are we supposed to get down from up here?" he asked Maiya, hoping their map indicated a place where they could descend safely.

"Well," she responded as she climbed down from her horse and walked over to the edge of the plateau to stand next to him. "Sir Terence told me that there are a few paths that were used to climb up the mountain side when the rain first started pouring. Some are pretty wide, but this one is quite narrow. I'd suggest that we go north a little ways until we come across a different path."

Zeke's face showed his dislike of the idea. "I want to get down there as quickly as we can. Can't we take the closest path? After all, it's just you and me and our horses. We don't need the path to be wide as long as we can guide our horses down from the plateau."

"I suppose you're right." Taking a look at her homemade map, she pointed to the left of them and said, "There was a dock for small boats built near the path so that we would always know where it was. If we find that, then we'll find the path." She started to turn to go back to her horse, but something about the look on Zeke's face made her stop and ask, "Are you okay, Zeke?"

"Yeah," he said with a nod. "It's just… look." He pointed out at the land below them.

Maiya turned her gaze back to the land and gasped. Originally, she had only taken the time to look down the face of the plateau, but now she was viewing the land itself. "We really should get going…"

Though Maiya had said this, neither made an effort to move. The sight before them was incredible, and they wanted to view it long enough to remember it in their minds with crystal clarity. From where they stood they could see the ocean and the forest, separated by a large expanse of flat land that was known as Hyrule Field. It was unlike anything they had ever seen before. All the colors were so defined, yet at the same time they were blended together. A sea of blue crashed against a larger ocean of various colors of green. Above all of this was the light blue sky, embracing the land and sea.

"Maiya…"

"I know…"

Without another word, they slowly tore their gaze away from the view and went back to their horses. Even as they traveled southward, both would take glances to the right.

Sakura, however, did not share their sense of splendor. "What is so special about that? It is just Hyrule Field."

Zeke opened his mouth to speak, but he slowly closed it as he took another glimpse of the land beyond the plateau.

"It's like this, Sakura," Maiya said. "Zeke and I have both grown up in a Hyrule where none of that existed. It was all covered in water. Now, all of that water is gone and are seeing Hyrule Field for the first time." Words would not do it justice, but she was willing to try so that Sakura might understand.

"Oh, I see," was the fairy's response. "It is like the first time I saw you."

Maiya gave her a quizzical look. "What do you mean? Was it your first time seeing a woman as a soldier?"

"No. You were the first fake man I have ever seen."

She was dumbstruck by the response, but had enough wits about her to ask why that was. "Why did you think I was a man?"

Zeke looked at the two and said, "To be fair, I thought you were a man yesterday, too. You were wearing a breastplate and a helmet. We couldn't tell that you were a girl."

"And when you grunt, you sound like a man." Both Zeke and Maiya looked at the fairy that was floating a few feet ahead of them. One had no words, while the other could think of none. "What is wrong with you two?" Sakura asked. "You got really quiet all of a sudden."

The prince could clearly see embarrassment on the tough girl's face, but she was hiding it well. While he agreed with Sakura that it had partially been because of the non-feminine yells and grunts that he had mistaken Maiya for a man, but to say that out loud would be grounds for a beating. "Now that I think about it," he said quickly in hopes that it would alleviate the situation. "I did think it was odd how a man could have such a slim figure. No man I know is that strong with such a slender body."

"I didn't know you paid that much attention to the bodies of men, prince," Maiya quipped, turning in her saddle to punch him in the shoulder. Looking ahead, she noticed a broken wooden structure and a group of men working to remove the debris. "What happened here, I wonder."

Thankful for the distraction, Zeke waved an arm at the men and called out to them. "Hoi! You there! What news do you have?"

The group, consisting of five men, stopped what they were doing and regarded the prince and his companion with cautious stares. They had not expected anyone to be nearby. One of the men recognized Zeke and returned the wave. "Well, if it isn't the prince. What brings you here?"

Zeke, as well as Maiya, recognized the man in return. "Sir Fandarel, why are you out here?" Zeke asked when they were close enough to chat without yelling. Both he and Maiya dismounted from their horses so they could speak to the knight on equal ground. It had not been hard to recognize the man. Though his features were relatively plain, it was that plainness that made him stand out. From the mess of dark curls that sat upon his head, to his kind brown eyes, Sir Fandarel was the simple image everyone could relate to.

Pointing behind him with his thumb, Fandarel shrugged as if there were no reason for him to be there at all. "Well, we noticed that the dock in New Castle Town fell over when the waters receded. I'm not exactly sure why. I think the wood craftsmen were just being lazy and didn't do a good job. So we came out here to see if this one fell over too. We're in the middle of moving the wood out of the way so that we can put up a proper gateway so people know they can use the path leading down to the Field."

"Do you need any help?" Maiya asked, knowing full well that if Fandarel went back to the castle and told Terence that she hadn't offered to help that she'd get a firm reprimand when she returned.

Zeke scowled at Maiya, but the look in her eyes told him not to say anything. Instead, he offered to help as well, seeing that it would be quicker if the two of them helped opposed to just one of them. "We don't really have any time restraints on when we have to be back in New Castle Town," he said. "So we can stay and help if you'd like."

Fandarel seemed very pleased to hear this, for he gave a sigh of relief and said, "More hands is always a help. I thank you both." As he was leading Zeke and Maiya to a place where they could tie up their horses, he continued to inform them of his findings. "You know, about twenty yards back from the plateau's edge, if you'll remember, was covered in sand. It's so strange because there isn't even a speck of it left. It's like as if the ocean took all the sand with it when it receded."

While Maiya was listened intently and asking questions every now and then, Zeke just tuned the two of them out as he looked around. He had no interest in the alleged magnificence of the ocean withdrawing from the land to take its place around the whole continent. It would have been one thing if he had been on land to witness it, but he had been in the middle of it when it decided to make an attempt on his life. If he could avoid thinking about it, he would.

"So, anyway," Fandarel said as he finished saying something about him being the only knight available to escort the woodcrafters out to the edge of the plateau. "It's quite fortunate that you two showed up when you did. We just need to move one last piece of debris, but it's just slightly too heavy for us to lift. With your strength, we may be able to move it."

Looking ahead of Fandarel, Zeke eyed the debris with a grimace. It was true that only one piece remained in the way, but it was covered in rusted nails and broken pieces of wood. "Why didn't you just tie a rope to it and have your horses pull it out of the way?" he asked, knowing the answer before he finished speaking.

A wave of shock went over the knight's face. "I didn't even think about that!"

Zeke just sighed and shook his head. Sir Fandarel was a combative genius capable of wielding any weapon. He was famous for his heroic deed of facing fifty soldiers and defeating all of them. However, despite his battle prowess, he was by no means the sharpest blade in the forge. With a sigh, Zeke thought, _Always trying to accomplish things with your own hands will get you no where, Fandarel_.

Maiya hid a smirk with her hand. "Good call, prince," she murmured.

"Does anyone have any rope?" Zeke asked, pulling a coil out of his saddlebag. As he tossed the rope to one of the woodcraftsman, he could not help but think that his mission had just started and was already getting complicated and tiresome. _This is going to be a long journey_.

It was a quick operation. With Zeke, Maiya, and the woodcraftsmen's horses, the debris was cleared in no time, and the three travelers could continue on their way. However, Fandarel would not let them leave just yet.

"So, you two are going to the old castle, right?" he asked. "Do you know what you're going for?"

Zeke climbed onto his horse and gave it a pat on the neck. "We're supposed to recover a box from the armory," he explained, turning to see if Maiya was going to add anything. From what he could see, she knew about as much as he did. Though he was ashamed to admit it, he added, "I'm not exactly sure what it is that we're looking for."

Fandarel looked from Zeke to Maiya then back to the prince. "I see. Well, be careful in your travels. This particular path down the cliff is the worst one. It's only wide enough for two horses to walk side-by-side. I wouldn't recommend doing that, though."

The look of concern on the knight's face was disheartening for Zeke. _Perhaps I should have listened to Maiya_, he thought as he started to consider the option of seeking another trail. It was too late to head for one of the other paths. The sun was nearing its peak in the sky and would begin its descent towards the horizon. If they wanted to reach Hyrule Field before dark, they would have to take the path in front of them.

"I'm sure we'll be fine, Sir Fandarel," Zeke said. "If you'll excuse us, we need to get going now."

With a nod, Fandarel bid them farewell and returned to work with the woodcraftsmen.

"He was a strange man," Sakura said as she took a seat in between Zeke's horse's ears. "Are all of the knights of Hyrule like him?"

Both Zeke and Maiya stared at the fairy in wonder. "Where have you been hiding?" Zeke asked, only just realizing she had not said a word since they saw Fandarel.

Holding onto the ears on both sides of her for support, Sakura turned to look at Zeke and said, "Fairies are not always received well when seen for the first time. I did not want to cause a commotion, so I hid in your saddlebag."

Before Zeke could question her further, his horse stepped onto the path that led down from the plateau, sending a chill down his spine. The path was smaller than he had been told. It was only wide enough for the two horses to travel in a single file line. From behind him, Zeke could hear Maiya take in a quick breath. "You okay back there, Maiya?"

"I could ask you the same thing," she responded. "You look pretty rigid."

He just scoffed and said, "Rigid? It's called good posture. I'm perfectly fine." While he had no fear of heights, he knew that falling off the trail would result in a painful death. However, he could not let Maiya know he was scared. Much to his relief, their concentration was soon completely taken up by the trail, ceasing all efforts to start a conversation.

When the new castle had been built, the deciding factor had been on the size of the landmass, making Zeke wonder if anyone knew just how treacherous the trail down the mountain was. He made a mental note to recommend moving back into the old castle if it was still in good condition as he jumped off of his horse to guide it down the mountain. It would take longer, but the path was riddled with rocks that his horse could slip on. Kicking a melon-sized rock off the trail, he mentally kicked himself for not listening to Maiya.

Despite the hazardous trail, climbing down the mountain gave them a good view of the land. Neither Zeke nor Maiya made mention of the fact that it was just not possible that Hyrule had somehow been preserved, but the thought was at the front of their minds.

After what felt like hours, they decided to take a break when they came across a part of the trail that was large enough for them to walk around. "Hey Zeke, I can see Lake Hylia from here," Maiya declared, shielding her eyes from the sun with her hand.

Zeke stood next to the girl and looked hard, just barely making out the blue against the green that surrounded it. "It's bigger than I thought it would be," he commented, squinting to see it more clearly. "We're making good time. We should reach the bottom of the mountain before nightfall."


	5. Chapter 5: Treasure for Pocket and Mind

Chapter 5: Treasure For Pocket And Mind

Zeke's prediction was off by a fraction. When they finally reached the bottom of the mountain, night had fallen and been in their company for quite some time. It was pure luck that they managed to avoid a fatal accident when it became too dark to trust ones' footing. Needless to say, they were both grateful to set their feet back on grass.

"Wow, that was quite the adventure," Maiya said, a soft laugh escaping her mouth. Tethering her horse to a nearby tree, she took a hatchet and began to chop wood for a fire. While she was off doing that, Zeke made himself useful by pitching their tents, failing to keep them up the first few times.

"I hope the weather keeps up the way it has," he said when Maiya got the fire going. "I don't think I would want to get caught up in rain down here. There's no where to go for cover."

Maiya looked around and had to agree with him. "You're right. Even if we overlapped our tents I don't think that would be enough to keep us dry for very long. Although, with the forest right there, I'm pretty sure we could take shelter in the trees and we'd stay relatively dry." She looked around curiously and let her gaze fall on Zeke. "Where's Sakura?"

Zeke shrugged. "I've been wondering that myself. I haven't seen her since we started down the trail."

Sakura crawled out of one of Zeke's saddlebags and flew over to her companions, making herself visible. "Someone said my name?" she asked, looked at Zeke and then Maiya, rubbing her eyes tiredly.

"We were just wondering where you'd gone off to," Maiya said, smiling sweetly.

"Oh. Well Zeke's saddlebag was comfortable so I slept in there." Warming her hands by the fire, Sakura started to hum quietly to herself, fluttering her wings to the rhythm. "What do we have to eat?"

Untying the sack the woman from New Castle Town had given them from her saddle, Maiya took it over to the fire and took a peek inside. "Well, most of it is food that won't spoil, so I'm guessing we'll have to hope some game made its way down here for us to hunt or our diet will consist of whatever fruits and vegetables we can find." She took a loaf of bread out of the sack and broke it in half, tossing one half to Zeke and tearing off a sizeable piece for Sakura to munch on. "The map shows a river that runs just beyond the edge of the forest. If we can find the river then chances are we will find fish. While I would prefer red meat, we'll have to make due with what we can find and catch."

"Don't worry about the fish," Zeke said. "I'm a pretty good fisherman, so our supply should be pretty steady." It was true that the prince had an uncanny ability to find fish in any water. Since fishing counted as productive work, he constantly drew his fishing pole and set about catching anything that nibbled at his line. "I caught a shark once," he said with a smirk.

"How did you do that?" Sakura asked, floating over to sit on his shoulder. "Sharks are not usually drawn in by bait. They like to hunt."

The memory was fresh in his mind and he had no problem recounting the tale. He had been sitting on a dock that pointed south and he had been getting a great haul, or at least a better catch than usual. "It had just finished raining," he explained, kicking his feet up onto a stump and leaning back to rest. "For some reason the fish like to be near the surface of the water when it rains. Anyway, Sir Calintz had come down to say hello and to buy some of my fish."

"Why would Sir Calintz want fish?" Maiya asked, wondering why the knight was important to the story. "I thought he didn't like fish."

Zeke nodded and said, "He doesn't, or at least not to eat. The fish oils are good for cleaning armor, and you know how he is about his armor and weapons looking good."

"Always immaculate," the girl murmured. "He scolded me once because a speck of rust had appeared on my sword."

"Anyway, I was reeling in a nice halibut when he came down and distracted me. My hook had ripped the inside of its mouth and it was flailing pretty hard. Next thing I knew I felt my pole being tugged on again and I almost got pulled into the sea. If Calintz hadn't of been there to help me I would have become some fish's lunch. We pulled the sucker out of the ocean and dragged it over to the kitchens."

Maiya snapped her fingers and bounced excitedly as she, too, recalled the memory, saying, "I remember now. The shark was offered to the academy for meals, but no one was willing to try it so it became dinner for the castle." She stood up and brushed breadcrumbs off of her lap and started to stretch as a smirk curled at the corner of her lips. "I begged Sir Terence to let me have a meal in the castle so I could have some."

"What did it taste like?" Sakura asked, intrigued about this prospect of eating a predator.

The girl made a thoughtful noise in her throat as she did a few toe touches. "I would have to say it was something like squid, or maybe cucco."

To this, Zeke scoffed and threw a pinecone at Maiya. "Why does everyone think new things taste like cucco?" he asked. "That's exactly what my sister said. Shark tastes like shark. End of story."

"Oh yeah?" Maiya regarded Zeke with a dangerous stare. "If you're so sure about that, why don't you grab your sword and fight me to see who's right."

"Why would I do that?" he asked. His face remained stoic, but underneath he was afraid of another humiliating defeat. Embarrassment was not worth something so ridiculous as the taste of food. "I'm not fighting you over something so stupid."

"You're not going to get any better if you don't practice, now are you?" Maiya said challengingly. She smiled and told him that she was not planning on fighting him over how something tasted. "Come on, I'll help teach you how to use that sword of yours so that it's more than just a pretty decoration." After she assured him that it would not be a real spar and merely a chance for him to learn, she grabbed her own sword and took a stance. "Now, yesterday you kind of lost it. Please don't do that again. Instead, just move slowly and think about where your next attack would be most effective. It helps if you can move between your attacks without having to halt your movement."

Reluctantly, Zeke drew his blade and settled into a basic stance. Sir Terence had recommended he use it until he improved his balance. With his right foot forward, he slightly dug his left foot into the grass behind him to brace himself. "So, what exactly do you want me to do?" he asked with a dull tone. He hoped that if he seemed completely uninterested, Maiya would just forget about the whole thing.

Maiya twirled her sword and examined the prince's stance, giving an approving nod. "Your stance is pretty solid. Your sword is a little low, but that's probably because your wrists aren't used to holding something heavier than a fishing pole." The taunt had the desired affect. Zeke's sword rose so that the sword was in a much more lethal position. Stepping forward and getting into the same stance as Zeke, Maiya smirked and said, "Let's begin."

As she tossed another log onto the fire, Maiya looked over at Zeke. Though she had gone easy on him during their practice spar, he had been conscientious of his footwork and sword to do well and had ended up getting smacked in the head by the flat of her blade. "You okay, prince?" she asked.

Without even looking at her, Zeke mumbled, "I'm fine…" He could not understand what went wrong. The day before, his movements had been fluid and smooth. Now his swordplay was stiff and unbalanced. The blow he took to the head was nothing compared to the blow he took to his pride.

Taking a seat next to him, Maiya gave him a pat on the back. "Don't worry. We'll practice for a little bit every day. You'll get better."

Zeke said nothing, just staring at the fire. _Day one over_, _but what will tomorrow hold_?

The next morning, a thick fog rolled in and made it nearly impossible to see. Zeke strained his eyes to see through the obstacle, while Maiya followed him with her bow drawn, her eyes shifting around nervously. Neither wanted to admit that they should give up on moving forward until the fog dissipated, so they went on, blind to the world around them.

"I would stop if I were you," said Sakura from above Zeke's head.

Zeke stopped his horse and looked at his fairy. "Why should I do that?" he asked, hardly able to see her through the veil.

Maiya smacked her forehead with her palm and pointed at the fairy that was barely visible. "Zeke, Sakura can see through this. We've been trying to see through this fog when we have someone here who can see just fine in this horrid weather anomaly."

"Maybe I should start paying more attention to you, huh Sakura?" The prince could barely hear a depressed sigh come from Sakura.

Sakura fluttered around his head. "Do not worry about it. Fairies have been ignored for centuries, why should it be any different now?" Her wings drooped sadly after she said this, as if to say that she had not wanted to admit something she knew to be true.

"No longer will that be, Sakura," Zeke said strongly, hoping to raise her confidence. "What do you see?"

Sakura made an odd bell noise before saying. "There is a hole three feet in front of you."

Maiya dropped from her horse to inspect the hazard just in case it was merely a pothole. Looking down into the darkness, she could just make out a shimmering square at the bottom. "Hey Zeke, come take a look at this." When he dismounted his horse and knelt down next to her she pointed this out to him. "If that's what I think it is, then I think we should go spelunking."

Zeke could hardly believe his eyes, sticking to his head into the hole to get a closer look. "A random hole in Hyrule Field that has a shiny panel at the bottom. I think you're right about going spelunking, Maiya." Jumping to his feet he ran over to his horse to grab a bag before returning to the hole.

"What is the big deal?" asked Sakura, "It is just a hole, is it not?"

Maiya also grabbed a bag, looking down into the hole to see how deep it was. "It could be a nasty drop if we miss the panel."

"Why are you two making such a big deal over a hole?" Sakura shouted, the feeling of being ignored once again filling her small body.

Maiya turned her head to the fairy and smiled. "Sakura, in Hyrule there are random holes in the ground. It is rumored that great treasures lay in them."

Sakura flew down to the hole, wanting to take a look herself. "Treasure, huh? I do not know about that, but I can feel a powerful energy emanating from this hole."

"What kind of energy?" Zeke asked, slowly losing his excitement over the whole thing.

"It feels like…fairy magic."

"Well, if there's danger then we'll be able to fight it off, right Zeke?" Maiya declared, smiling confidently.

Zeke wondered if she was being sarcastic. The look in her eyes told him that she was really excited about the fact that there could be treasure below them. _Is that all she cares about right now_? Pushing this thought away, he placed both of his hands on the sides of the hole and dropped down into it.

The landing was far from graceful and nowhere near as soft as Zeke had hoped it would be. He landed hard on his left ankle, twisting it painfully. Before he could voice his agony or tell Maiya not to jump in, she dropped down and landed right on top of him.

Realizing the ground she was sitting on was moving, Maiya gasped out of surprise. "Sorry," she apologized, quickly moving to get off of the sprawled out Zeke. "Thanks for softening my landing though."

"Dunmuntnig..."

"Excuse me?"

Zeke lifted his head and spat out some dirt, wiping his face. "I said don't mention it."

Maiya helped Zeke to his feet and supported him until he could stand on his own. Brushing themselves off, they inspected the small cavern. At the back of the cave was a treasure chest, which Maiya literally jumped on.

"Zeke! We found a chest!"

Zeke limped over and looked at it with pure bliss. "Even if we do fail our mission, it won't matter. We'll have enough money to just disappear and never return to the castle!"

"I wouldn't go that far," Maiya said, unable to suppress her excitement. "I happen to like my position as an academy soldier, and I want to return, but with this I'll be able to purchase some good land for a home."

Sakura floated over to them and sat on top of the chest. "How do you know? You have not even opened it yet."

Maiya frowned at the fairy. "You party pooper…" Zeke laughed, earning a punch in the shoulder from Maiya. "Shut up! Why do you have to be so negative?" she mumbled. After a sad sigh, she admitted, "She's right though. We need to open it before we celebrate."

Sakura flew off of the chest before Maiya kicked it, causing the lid to raise itself and open. What the three saw was what they had hoped for, a fortune in diamonds, rupees, and gold. Maiya squealed in her excitement.

"I knew it! We're rich!"

Zeke knelt down next to the chest and grinned devilishly. "Well, you may want to return to the castle, but I'm taking my share and disappearing for good." Removing his bag from his belt, he started filling it with the precious gems and jewels that sat in the chest before him.

Maiya, too, held her bag in one hand and filled it with the other. Neither spoke to the other while they sated their greed. Both were too busy thinking of all the things they could spend their newfound wealth on. When they had emptied the chest of its contents, they returned to the shining panel that, according to legend, would lift them out of the cavern. Zeke stepped up first, waiting for something to happen. As he was about to complain and suggest that they should have lowered themselves down with a rope, the panel began to glow fiercely, launching him out of the cavern and safely setting him back on his feet above the underground cave.

"Whoa, that was different." He heard Maiya loose a high-pitched squeal and turned around just in time to see her lose her balance and fall over. "You okay?"

She stood up, trying to hide the blush that had appeared on her face. "Yeah, I just didn't expect that. That's all." She quickly jumped to her feet and went to tie the treasure filled bag to her horse. As she finished tying the knot that secured her riches to her horse, she paused and looked at Zeke, asking, "Hey, where's Sakura?"

"Wasn't she floating by you when you opened the chest?" Zeke said, looking around for a glimpse of the shimmering ball of light. "Sakura! Where'd you get to?"

"I'm down in the hole!" the fairy's voice said faintly.

Zeke shook his head and sighed. "She's probably gone and got herself tangled in some vines or something. Wait here, I'll be right back." He returned to the hole and this time lowered himself as far as he could before letting go of the sides of the cave entrance. To his relief, he fell directly on to the panel that sent a strong magical force to catch him and set him down gently. "Sakura, come on. We need to get going."

"Hey Zeke! The fog is letting up!" Maiya shouted from above him.

"Okay! You hear that Sakura? We should get going while we can see."

The fairy was nowhere in sight, but Zeke could faintly hear her funny noises coming from somewhere nearby. Placing a hand on the wall, he followed it until he found a crack in the wall that he had missed before. The aperture was just big enough for him to squeeze through, but he was too wary to chance putting himself at risk.

"Zeke, I found something!" Sakura shouted excitedly as she flew at him from the hole in the wall.

Zeke fell to the ground with a loud yell. It was far from comforting to have a light fly at his face. When he returned to his feet, it was clear that he was quite shaken. "What…what did you find?"

"Come on, it is important." She disappeared into the wall again, but not before chastising Zeke for being a wimp.

"Zeke? Is everything all right down there?" Maiya asked, impatience, but also concern, in her tone.

"I'm fine," he responded. "Come down here. Sakura says that she's found something important." Rising to his feet, he approached the aperture and started to squeeze through. It was a real tight fit and he had to suck in his gut to make it through. On the other side, he found himself standing in what appeared to be a long room, for it looked as if someone had constructed it. In the center was a narrow walkway made of pure white stones, and at the end was a fountain made of the same stone. Along the sides was a shallow pool of sparkling water. "Sakura? Where are we?"

"I don't know." She was floating by his head now, but quickly landed on his shoulder, gripping his long red hair to keep from falling off as he walked up the stone pathway. "This is where the power I felt is coming from."

"Zeke, do you think you could lend me your aid before you go any farther?" Maiya's hand was sticking out of the wall behind him, waving for him to come over.

"Why do you need help? You're slimmer than I am. You should have no problem getting through." Despite his statement, he reached out and took her hand, giving a subtle tug.

"Ouch! Be careful!" She was wedged in between the walls of the aperture with a pained expression on her face. "Regardless of how slim I am, I'm still a girl."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

She glared at him and struggled to make it through. "I have a little bit more on my chest than you do, dumb ass." After a strong pull on Zeke's end, she was yanked free of the constricting space, but this did not bring about kind words of thanks. Clutching her chest with one arm, she punched Zeke as hard as she could in the shoulder. "Why did you go and pull so hard? I think you just bruised my chest."

Not knowing what to do, Zeke just rubbed his shoulder and turned his back to the wall. "Do you know what this place is, Maiya?"

The girl looked around and shook her head. "No, I don't, and I think it would have been a better idea to stay up there."

Ignoring Maiya's complaints, Zeke walked forward, his footsteps echoing around him. At the very end of the walkway, he found a three-pieced golden triangle inlaid into the stone at his feet. "That's interesting…"

"What is that?" Maiya asked curiously, but still sounding quite irritated.

Reaching into his tunic, Zeke pulled out a small, wooden flute and held it in his fingers delicately. "If I'm not mistaken, that is our country's avatar, the Triforce."

"The Triforce? You mean the object of folklore and legend that they speak of in children's stories?"

"Regardless of where it's origins lie, this is the symbol that tells people that this is Hyrule." He stood on top of the mark in the stone and took a deep breath, blowing into this flute and producing a clear and strong note.

"What, you play flute now too?" Maiya asked.

He ignored Maiya and began to play an old tune that he had learned from an old friend when he was around four. It was the Hylian Lullaby, and it was passed down in the royal family from father to son, mother to daughter since Queen Zephyr united the country.

Each note played resonated with an ancient power that filled the room with more than just sound. Though it sounded crazy, Zeke thought the room was amplifying the sound of his flute, and even adding a harmony to it.

When he finished playing, nothing happened, but after he had shown his dismay at the failure of his attempt, the cavern began to shake violently. Zeke caught Maiya as she fell down after a fierce tremor, nearly falling over himself. The pool of water in front of them began to spin, creating a whirlpool before them. From the center of the pool a beautiful woman wearing a gorgeous gown emerged. Her long green hair floated about her as if it was weightless, giving her a celestial look about her.

Staring down at them with shockingly jade colored eyes, she smiled down at the two humans and the fairy before her. "It has been many years since humans have appeared in my presence."

Zeke gasped, looking at the floating figure curiously. "Are you…are you one of the fabled great fairies of legend?"

"Legend? I think not," the fairy said, amused. "However, I am indeed a great fairy. You may call me Lily."

Maiya, who had been shocked into silence by the appearance of the fairy, stiffly bowed. "It is an honor to be in your presence, Lily."

"Such polite humans," Lily said cheerfully. "The last person who came to my fountain started making demands of me, and he was quite rude about it. What are your names?"

"I am Zeke, prince of Hyrule. This girl is Maiya, and this sweet fairy is Sakura. We have not come to make demands, or to even ask for anything. Sakura was drawn here by the power emanating from your fountain and wished to investigate."

Sakura flew up to Lily and bounced in front of her face, overjoyed with finding a great fairy. "They say that one day I will become like you," she blurted, her words coming out in a rapid torrent.

Lily laughed, an enchantingly melodic laugh, and held out her finger for Sakura to land on. "That could be true, however there is much you must do before becoming a great fairy like me. It's a difficult path, but if you really want to become a great fairy then I don't doubt that you'll one day become one." She looked down at Zeke and Maiya and gave them a quirky smile. "You two are being oddly silent. Is something wrong?"

They both shook their heads hastily. "No, Lily. We are just stunned by your presence, that's all," Zeke said confidently.

"Am I really that beautiful?" She laughed as Zeke's face tinted red, but a look at Maiya wiped the smile from her face. "You appear to be hurt."

Maiya gave Zeke a quick glare before saying, "Yeah. All thanks to him."

"Consider it pay back for spraining my ankle," he shot back.

"I didn't even do that!"

The fairy held out her hands and Zeke and Maiya were surrounded by a blue aura. "I don't like seeing people in pain. This should make it all go away." Even before she finished speaking, Zeke and Maiya both felt their pain ease into nonexistence.

Taking off is boot, Zeke inspected his ankle curiously. "Wow, that's amazing."

"Yeah, there's no sign of us ever being hurt."

Zeke looked up, but quickly brought his gaze back down. "I didn't need to see that."

"What? Can't a girl look down her own shirt to make sure she doesn't have damaged goods?"

Zeke felt his ears burn as if they were on fire. "Whatever…"

Lily, happy to see them more comfortable, snapped her fingers, causing the surrounding walls to fade away into nothingness. "Now, it's customary of great fairies to bestow upon adventurers certain knowledge, however my knowledge is not quite as important as other fairies'. I will not force it upon you if you do not wish to hear it."

Zeke and Maiya exchanged glances and shrugged. "It couldn't hurt to learn something."

Lily seemed to brighten at this and raised her hand up to bring the water around the walkway up to form walls. In these walls, Zeke and Maiya could see three women with great wings flying down towards what must have been the world they lived in. "In the beginning there were three goddesses who formed the land, filled it with life, and gave it law, or so legend says. This knowledge has been passed down through the ages to tell of the world's creation. In truth, there were four." In the wall of water, a fourth woman appeared, following the other three with a joyous smile. "The fourth goddess, Sri Tessla did not agree to the balance that the other three had spoken of, so she created something that would set some of the people apart from the rest. She gave the world magic in order to separate some beings from the others." Zeke and Maiya watched as Sri Tessla approached a group of faceless people and touched each of them, making them all glow with an eerie light.

"For her treachery, the other goddesses banished Sri Tessla from the realm of which they came. So when the others left, she remained. Sri Tessla soon learned the error of her ways, and deemed herself the keeper and protector of the Triforce. She took the form of a young Hylian girl and made her home in Hyrule. As you can guess she failed countless times." The walls showed a pretty young girl standing before a magnificent cathedral that made Zeke think of the Harper Hall.

"Before she finally gave up, she created a fourth force, the force that can counter evil. She split it into seven pieces, and then descended into the earth underneath Hyrule. The pieces were hidden in the most secluded parts of the world with the help of heroes from the past. Those pieces, when brought back together, will create the land's most powerful essence, the essence of light. If one could only bring them together, they could extinguish evil for good." Before the watery projections ceased, they caught a glimpse of the girl with a crystal triangle in her hands that broke into seven pieces that shot into the sky and disappeared.

Zeke looked at Maiya, and then at Lily. "Do you want _us_ to look for the pieces?"

The fairy regarded him sourly. "Not at all, prince. You are much too handsome to go off on an adventure so dangerous." Zeke found himself once again blushing, hearing Maiya giggle and then felt her nudge him in the ribs suggestively. "Besides, this is only a simple tale. The chances that such a power really exists are unfeasible."

Zeke took a moment to digest the information he had heard. In his mind he tried to weigh out the truth behind it, but it was much too deep for him to contemplate. "Well, Lily, thank you for healing our aches and bruises and for the story. I apologize, but we must get going."

Lily began to pout, but her smile returned as she laughed once more. "You're very welcome. Perhaps you two will find your ways back here someday? If you do, I'll be waiting." She gave Zeke a wink and twirled a finger.

All went black, and then Zeke, Maiya, and Sakura found themselves next to the horses outside of the cave. Both humans looked around to see if they were really back outside, but the evidence was undeniable.

"Hey Zeke, is it just me, or did that fairy seem to have a crush on you?" Maiya teased, nudging him in the ribs again.

"Oh, shut up. She was just lonely, that's all. She hasn't seen anyone in years, so seeing a male being probably just set her off." He climbed up onto his horse and waited for Maiya to follow suit. "Besides, she's a great fairy and I'm human. I'm pretty sure that doesn't work."

"I'll bet she would give you anything you desired if you took care of _her_ desires," she said as she mounted her horse. They both laughed and continued on their way, following along the border of the forest.

"Do you guys think I could become a great fairy?" Sakura asked, her gaze switching between them.

Zeke, who had no idea what that involved, shrugged. "I don't know. I'm not an expert on fairies, but if you want it bad enough then I think you can."

They had only traveled a short distance when the sun began to set. It became apparent to them that they had spent more time in the cavern than they had originally thought, burning more daylight than they liked. Setting up camp, they could only hope that there would be no fog to hinder their progress with the coming day.


	6. Chapter 6: Disturbing, Then Comforting

Chapter 6: Disturbing Then Comforting

"Okay, Zeke. Come at me again."

Zeke lunged at Maiya with his sword low, bringing it up to attack at her head. She brought up her sword to block the attack, but the blade disappeared and came back into existence near her legs. With a sweep of her sword, she parried in time to avoid an accident involving the loss of a leg. Before she could counter, Zeke spun around and attempted to catch her off guard by kicking at her heels. Performing a back handspring to avoid the offending leg, she surprisingly caught Zeke under the chin with her own foot. Confident that the prince would be stunned, Maiya jumped forward and swung her sword at Zeke's abdomen. She was completely shocked to find a sword point right in front of her face.

Zeke was holding his sword with one hand, raising his other hand in a sign of surrender. He was swaying slightly, hinting that he was dizzy from the kick under the chin. "You okay, Zeke?" she asked, keeping her sword at the ready just in case he was bluffing.

Lowering his sword, Zeke brought up a hand and gently massaged his jaw. "I think so." Taking a step to see if he could walk was a mistake, for his vision blurred and he fell to his knees from dizziness.

Maiya sheathed her sword and went to help him up, afraid that she might have killed him or caused permanent brain damage of some sort. "We'll take a break for now so you can rest. I'm getting a little hungry anyway." Throwing his arm over her shoulder, she helped him walk over to the fire and set him down with his back propped against a log that had been placed as a seat. "Stay there while I get you something to chew on."

Zeke massaged his jaw with a pained expression on his face. Though no damage had occurred he knew that there would be a bruise under his chin the next day, but it was worth it. He smiled at the thought that he actually beat Maiya in a spar, even if she was under a handicap to make it easier on him. "Hey Maiya, how is it that I beat you just now?" he asked casually.

She looked up from the bag of food and blinked, slow to understand the question. "Uh…what?"

"I beat you just now," he repeated. "How is that?"

Maiya laughed and tossed a small sack of dried meat rolls at Zeke. "Ha! You didn't beat me. You surrendered, so I won." She grabbed a loaf of bread and went to sit by Zeke. "Besides, you already know that I was going easy on you."

Zeke smirked and took a handful of meat rolls before offering the sack to Maiya. "Whatever you say."

Maiya broke the loaf in half and took a bite out of it, handing the other half to Zeke. "Although, I will admit that you're getting better." Silence fell as they continued to eat, giving Sakura a chance to voice her opinion on the spar.

"If you ask me, I think you both lost," she said, lying on Zeke's saddle. "Maiya, you would have had a blade in your head if you would have gone a few inches further, and Zeke was about to fall over from getting kicked in the chin."

"Sakura, I'd like to see _you_ pick up a sword and fight either of us," Zeke said, slightly irritated. He offered his sword to her jokingly, but the fairy was far from amused.

"Oh, well look who thinks he is hilarious," she snapped, turning away from him and pretending to be asleep.

"Perhaps we should follow her example and go to bed," Maiya suggested, standing up and stretching. Giving Zeke an encouraging pat on the shoulder, she said, "Good job on your sword work. G'night." First checking her horse to see if it was content, she then disappeared into her tent and left Zeke by himself.

"Night." He stared into the fire for a little while before going to his own tent.

Zeke was standing on a grassy hillside, looking out across the plains. He looked to his right and there was Maiya, lying in the grass. She was wearing a pure white dress, and he had to admit that she was beautiful. To his left was his mother, Queen Zelda, smiling at him lovingly. He felt happy, happier than he had ever been in his life, and nothing could make this moment any better.

Zelda took his hand and said, "Zeke, you are the king now. All of this land you see before you is now yours. I'm so proud of you for all of your achievements and I'm sorry for the way I've treated you all of your life. I love you, Zeke, I mean it." She then skipped away, humming happily.

Zeke smiled and sat down next to Maiya. "Did you hear that?" he asked, unable to suppress his elation. "My mother said that she's proud of me, and that she loves me."

"I told you that she did," Maiya responded, smiling. "I had no doubt that she did. You just had to be patient and wait for her to realize it." She sat up and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him on the cheek. "Just like I love you." They shared an affectionate glance and turned to look out across the plains again. "And now look. You are the king of Hyrule, and our children will be the next princes and princesses."

Zeke laughed heartily, "That's true. Let's try not to spoil them too much, okay?"

"Aw, why not? I was hoping that I could take our daughter out shopping every other day." She started to pout, but laughter took over almost a second later.

His vision became blurry, and then night had fallen. He looked around and he was alone, but he could see someone running up the hillside towards him. The man looked as if he had just escaped from a vicious battle, his armor and clothes covered in blood. "Your majesty, the enemy is too strong! We can't defeat them!"

"Calm yourself, soldier," Zeke said, trying to be reassuring. "No enemy is invincible. We'll find a way to stop them." He gave the man a pat on the back, but something was wrong. The light in the man's eyes disappeared and he fell to the ground, a knife protruding from his back. Zeke stared down at the man, unable to register what had just happened.

"We gave you the chance to surrender, King Zeke." He spun around and saw a pale-faced man dressed in dark armor that emanated with evil energy. "We told you that all you had to do was bow to our lord and all would be fine, but you fought. Now look at your land." The new man pointed to the plains, and Zeke saw that they were on fire, blazing with the fury of madness.

"What have you done?" Zeke asked, staring at the land before him, turning to see Castle Town in flames. "Why have you done this?" he screamed.

"Zeke!" Maiya was running for him, but she fell, her back full of arrows.

Zeke fell to his knees, his limbs feeling unnaturally weak. "Why…"

"I'll tell you why," the man said. "I want to be the undisputed ruler of the world. I want my dark minions to inhabit the land while you and your people have to hide in the darkness like we once did. Now run, king, run for your life."

Zeke turned around and saw a terrifying creature with a massive sword approaching him. He hurried to his feet and started to run away, dashing down the grassy hillside in fear. He turned to see if he was still being followed, but he ran into something and fell down. A tree blocked his way. Scurrying to get up, he felt confused as to how he wound up in a rotting forest. It did not matter though, the creature was still there, and it was lusting for blood.

Seeing a path amongst the gnarled trees, Zeke headed in that direction, running as hard as he could. No matter how fast he ran though, the creature seemed to be getting closer and closer. The closer it got, the more Zeke was aware of the horror it represented. He could smell death on this creature, along with the essence of fear.

He cried out into the darkness around him, afraid for his life. Somehow he knew that this thing would not just kill him, but erase him from existence all together. The blade this creature possessed would end his life, and then it would tear his soul to pieces.

Zeke tripped and stumbled, scurrying to his feet out of the fear that it would get him, but he miraculously stayed just out of reach. He then realized that he had a sword, and in one fluid motion, he spun around, using his momentum to draw the sword. The creature must have realized that its prey was fighting back, because it made a noise that sounded like it was laughing.

Waiting for the massive blade to fall, Zeke parried and ran forward, slashing at the creatures arm. The arm fell to the ground, along with the massive sword. Feeling like he had discovered the way to rid himself of the dark being, he went to attack again, but something was off.

The creature picked up its arm and it reattached to its body. Zeke stared at the sight, disgusted and terrified. He assaulted the creature again, hacking away at it with all of his strength, but it would not stay in pieces.

After Zeke had cut the creature into more pieces than he thought possible, it once again started to come back together. Dropping his sword, Zeke started to run again, hoping that he could get far enough away for it to give up on following him before it became whole again.

"Zeke." A voice echoed all around him. He could not identify it, but he hoped that it would come and aid him in his plight. He could feel the creature again, getting closer…closer. He turned to see if it was behind him, but regretted his decision instantly.

He ran into something, and when he looked up from the ground, he saw that the creature was standing in front of him. "What_ are_ you?" he yelled.

He had not expected an answer, but when the thing started to speak, he started to recognize the thing as human. "I am a deity of death," it said, its voice whisper like, completely unlike Zeke would have imagined. The creature started to change shape, turning into a shockingly handsome human. His eyes were as black as the hair that fell around his face like curtains. His mouth was in a crooked sneer that revealed enlarged canines, making them fangs. Along the edges of his ears were multiple rings and studs, giving him the appearance that he had no problem with pain at all. "I have no name, so I'll let you give me one."

Zeke stared up at the man and shook his head. "I know your name already…it's Kai." He slowly rose to his feet, but Kai was going to have none of that. With a quick movement that Zeke could not even see, he slashed at Zeke's thighs with his sword, placing Zeke back on the ground.

"I did not say you could stand, Zeke."

"Why are you doing this?"

Kai picked Zeke up by the front of his shirt and held him right in front of his face. "I'm going to kill you, prince. I'm going to tear you limb from limb, and drink your blood when I'm done. Then, I'm going to drink your soul." He touched the tip of his sword to Zeke's abdomen, and his crooked smile widened to reveal all of his perfect teeth. "Good bye, prince." Unable to do anything, Zeke could only watch as the massive blade went back, and then came right back into him.

Zeke shot up with a scream, but a pain in his head caused him to lower himself back down. Opening his eyes, he flinched as he saw a pair of crimson eyes floating just above his face. It took him a few moments to see the fair skin and pink hair beyond the eyes, completely sure that he was being attacked by a hideous shadow beast instead of having his traveling companion leaning over him to see if he was all right.

"Zeke, are you okay?" Maiya asked with concern written all over her face. Her hands were cupping his face and keeping his head facing her so she could see how well his eyes were focusing.

He took a steadying breath and quickly nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I had a pretty bad nightmare just now," he explained as she helped him sit up.

"I thought it might be something like that when I saw you thrashing about in your sleep. I thought you might hurt yourself so I pulled you out of your tent and brought you over here where there isn't anything to hit yourself with," she said with a sigh. "I had a nightmare as well, but it wasn't anything too bad."

As he noticed that he was indeed outside of his tent in the fresh air, an image of the man with the sword appeared in his mind, his fangs bared in a menacing sneer. _His name is Kai_. "What was your dream about?" he asked to delay mentioning his.

Maiya furrowed her brow and thought for a moment. "Well, someone pushed me off of a cliff and I spent the rest of my time falling into an endless abyss, and right before I hit the ground I woke up."

"That's sounds awful." Zeke had his fair share of "falling" dreams and knew that they were no fun. "Was that all though?"

Maiya nodded and gave him a sweet smile. "I'm pretty lucky in the fact that I'm not usually susceptible to nightmares. I only have them once every few months when there's something that's worrying me. In this case, I'm a little unnerved that we haven't run into anything out here yet." She threw another sizable piece of wood onto the fire and rubbed her hands to warm them. "What about you?"

Zeke told her of his dream, leaving out the part about her, and how it started out happy, but turned into the most horrid dream he had ever had. He spoke of the pale-faced man, and of Kai, the demon of destruction. "What do you think it all means?"

"Probably nothing. If anything, it means that you are afraid of failing. I wouldn't let it bother me if I were you." She stood up and started to head for her tent, but Zeke reached out and took her hand to keep her from leaving. "What is it, Zeke?"

"Can you stay…just for a little while longer?" he asked, looking up at her. If it was not for the need that showed in his eyes, Maiya might have considered returning to her tent anyway, but instead she took a seat again and stayed for Zeke's sake.

"That scary of a dream, huh? You'll get over it, trust me." She gave him a rough pat on the back, and laughed. "Can't be any worse than really dying, am I right?"

Zeke gave her a searching look. Her behavior was not very feminine, and revealed that she spent too much time around men. This brought her part of his dream to mind. "Maiya, when was the last time you wore a dress?"

The girl stopped laughing and stared at him as if stunned. He admitted to himself that the question was slightly random and had come unwarranted, but after asking the question he had to admit that he really was curious. Maiya scrunched her face trying to find an answer. "Uh…not for about three years. Why?"

He shrugged and tried to appear inconspicuous. "No reason. I just always see you in battle wear, so I thought I would ask."

She frowned and pushed him over. "Are you implying that I'm not girly? Is that it?" She stood up and feigned offense, crossing her arms and looking away. "For your information, I am more of a girl than your mother was when she was our age."

Zeke jumped to his feet quickly and reached out his hand to grab her in case she decided to leave. "Wait, I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by it." He saw her smirk, but before he could register it as a dangerous look, he was tackled to the ground and Maiya held him down with unbelievable strength.

"Oh? You sure? I don't think you've really thought of me as a girl once since you found out who was sparring with you three days ago. Have you just neglected to realize that I'm not a boy or did it just evade your slow and dimwitted mind all together?"

In his position, it was painfully obvious that the girl on top of him was purely enjoying his torment. "I…uh…well…"

"What? Can't put words together now that I'm forcing you to acknowledge what I am?" She smiled down at him, a dangerous and wicked smile. "Well, I suppose it's a good thing that you haven't paid too much attention to my body, or tried undressing me with your eyes. Quite the gentleman."

Zeke felt his ears burning and was pretty sure that they were crimson from the boiling hot blood that was pumping into them. "Are you going to get off?"

"I don't think I will," Maiya teased, repositioning so she would be more comfortable. "I think I'll stay right here until morning."

"Are you two mating or something?" Sakura looked up from her spot drowsily, eyeing the situation with partial interest. "Humans are so weird."

Maiya was off of Zeke before Sakura had finished speaking, sitting back down by the fire. "No, Sakura, we're not…mating. I'm just teaching Zeke that he should respect women such as ourselves."

"I would not call you a woman, or a lady, or a girl for that matter," Sakura murmured, dropping her head into her arms again.

Maiya picked up a small rock and aimed it at the fairy, but Zeke took a hold of her wrist and pulled her back to her feet. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Oh? And what'll happen if I do?" She tried to pull her wrist free with a technique she had learned in her military training, but it did nothing to free her from his grip. Scowling, she tried it again with the same results. "Why isn't that working?"

"Because you're not doing it right," Zeke smirked. Twisting around so his back was to her, he thrust a hip into her and threw her over his shoulder. Unable to right herself in midair, Maiya had no choice but to land on her back and hope that the impact would be soft.

When she hit the ground, a muffled _THUD_ resounded and she felt air escape her lungs. Zeke was not in any mood to let her crawl away to lick her wounds it seemed, for he took the momentary weakness to roll her onto her stomach and put her in a double arm bar, locking his hands and running around her so that when he was done she was stuck in a bridged position with no room to get out.

Keeping his arms underneath her, he sat down and laughed. "Bet you didn't see that coming."

Maiya tried to struggle out of the lock, but the maneuver had taken advantage of her flexibility, and thus the mobility she had always been praised for became her worst enemy. "Alright, you win. Now let me out, this hurts."

"I don't think I will. You made me uncomfortable, so I'm just turning the tables," he said in a matter-of-fact way. He then added, "You deserve this."

Maiya could do nothing but stay in her current position, getting angrier the longer she was forced to endure it. There was no way out of the arm bar and, while it was not too excruciatingly painful, it was not the most comfortable position to be held in. "You know, Zeke, if anything, this should be more uncomfortable for you."

"Why is that?"

She smirked and said quite unashamedly, "Now you have no choice but to accept that I'm a girl."

He was about tell her to elaborate, but he stopped short when he realized that with her back arched in the way it was, it was nearly impossible to ignore her femininity. Looking in the opposite direction, his ears burned hotter than before and considered releasing her so he could walk away.

"You better not be staring at me," Maiya muttered, restarting her struggle to be free. "Prince or not, I'll kill you if you take advantage of this situation."

"I'm not even looking at you," he said quietly, closing his eyes. With his reputation, the last thing he wanted to have added to the list was perversion. However, even with his eyes closed, he could still notice things about Maiya. With a soft breeze blowing, he could clearly make out the scent of pomegranates drifting in the air around them.

Maiya had to strain her neck and eyes to see that he was speaking truthfully, and it only made her laugh. "Damn, you're the strangest boy I've met. Any other guy in Hyrule would be taking advantage of this, and yet _you_ just sit there and look the other way. Let me go and I promise I won't hurt you."

Zeke needed no further prompting. Though it was difficult, he pulled his arms out from under her and crawled back over to the fire, lying down and closing his eyes. He heard Maiya flop down next to him, and he opened an eye to look up at her expressionless face. "Yes?"

Maiya shrugged and made a noise in her throat to back it up, yet her gaze stayed on the prince. He found it rather unnerving, but closed his eye again and tried to ignore her. This proved futile, as he could feel her staring at him even though he was blind to it. Finally, he sat up and, his face just inches from hers, shouted, "What do you want!"

Used to having people scream at her, Maiya was untouched by any emotion that would normally have overtaken a lesser girl. Reaching forward, she brushed the side of Zeke's face with her thumb, then, placing her hand on the back of his neck, pulled him to her and kissed him. When she released him, she merely said, "Just wanted to know what that would feel like. Good night." Rising to her feet, she returned to her tent and disappeared from view.

Zeke stared after her, utterly dumbfounded. "Uh…what?"


	7. Chapter 7: Bound to a Fairy

Chapter 7: Bound To A Fairy

"What were you two doing last night anyway?" Sakura sat on Zeke's head, clutching his hair to keep from falling off. She had been pestering them all morning about the previous night's activities, wanting to know what had transpired. Maiya had done a good job explaining that she and Zeke were just training in the dark in case they were ever put into a situation where they would have to fight with limited light, but the fairy was unconvinced.

When asked, Zeke would just grunt and quietly tell Sakura to ask Maiya. He was confused and hardly trusted his voice to really explain anything. The girl riding next to him seemed to be pretty good at coming up with a story so he left it up to her to continue. In his mind, he was reliving every second that had transpired the night before, trying with all of his brainpower to see something that he may have missed.

"Sakura, we told you already and this is the last time I'm going to say it," Maiya growled. "We were practicing in low light so we can be ready in case we ever get into that kind of a situation."

"It did not look like you were practicing," the fairy murmured from a top Zeke's head. "We fairies may be ignorant to the world that we have yet to explore, however we are born with incredible knowledge about the beings that fill the world. I definitely think that you two were mating."

"How could we have been?" Maiya asked. "We were wearing clothes. Tell her, Zeke. We don't have the slightest attraction for each other."

Zeke hoped that he would disappear so that he could get away without having to answer, but he knew that the longer he hesitated that he would arouse suspicion in not only Sakura, but Maiya as well. Biting his cheek, a habit he had for punishing himself whenever he had to lie, he said, "I prefer girls that are a bit shorter and can't wield a sword with such deadly precision that I could lose parts of me if I made her angry."

"See? We are just fierce rivals when it comes to sparring." Maiya's demeanor became like stone, leaving no cracks or weaknesses for Sakura to argue through. "So just lay off before we have to stick you in a jar and leave you there."

Sakura was no more pleased by this threat than Zeke was, feeling the fairy's anger inside of his own mind. Without another word, the ball of light, that was quickly becoming red, shot off ahead of them to fume.

"You probably shouldn't have said that," Zeke said quietly, feeling sympathy for his small companion. "You should know that when she's upset that I feel it too."

Maiya gave him a curious glance and smiled. "Is that true? You can feel her emotions?" When he nodded his confirmation, she stared at him in awe. "Not very many people have that ability."

"What ability?"

"The ability to feel a fairy's emotions. It means that you have great magical potential and it's almost always a good omen. You're quite fortunate because you share a special link with Sakura that allows you to communicate with your minds."

He looked at her doubtfully, but it did, however, explain how the fairy had been talking to him without him voicing his thoughts the day he and Maiya sparred on the training grounds. Feeling rather sheepish, he thought to himself a consoling image that he hoped would find its way to the infuriated fairy. Much to his surprise, he felt an odd rise of cheer appear out of nowhere.

_I know not where that came from, but I feel a little better already. Maybe I will return to those two in a little bit if I can settle down just a bit more_.

Zeke must have reflected his astonishment on his face for Maiya seemed to beam. "You heard her didn't you?" Unable to find words, he merely nodded and looked ahead of them to see if he could find the fairy waiting for them. "Tell her that she can come back whenever she's ready, okay?"

"Why? She's already decided that she'll do just that when she's cooled off," he replied, realizing how ridiculous it would sound to someone unfamiliar with the circumstances. He found it more than just a little unbelievable himself, but he had heard her voice just as clearly as if she was standing on his shoulder and talking right into his ear.

"Well, if that's how she feels about it, then we shouldn't interfere. Besides, until you speak to her about this connection, you may scare her if your voice appears in her head and you're not standing nearby." Maiya rolled her shoulders to loosen the tightening muscles and scowled. "I never liked riding horses. Too hard on your muscles if you ask me."

"I'm fairing pretty well."

"Well then you must have been built to withstand the up and down motion of a walking horse. Where as I," and she gestured towards herself with her hand, "am not quite suited for this. I feel quite uncomfortable sitting astride this beast. Despite my insecurities, I am forced to acknowledge that these four legged creatures are much faster than myself and I will set aside my discomfort for the better of mankind."

Zeke regarded her with a bland gaze and he felt his nose twitch, an involuntary tic that appeared whenever he found himself annoyed. "You sound like one of those fat scholars that work in the Archives."

"What do you expect? I spent nearly four years in the confines of that horrid hall. If it didn't pay so well I would have left sooner." The look of distaste upon the girl's face was enough to convince Zeke that her experiences were far from glamorous.

Silence fell between them, allowing Zeke to word his next sentence without interruption. "Maiya, why did you…you know…"

Maiya kept her gaze forward, appearing to have not heard him. When he opened his mouth to repeat himself, she shot him a fierce look that stopped the words in his mouth. "I gave my reason last night."

"Not a very good one if you ask me," he mumbled quietly so she could not hear him. Feeling that he had to know exactly why, he prepared himself to send another question at her, placing his hand on the pommel of his sword in case she got hostile. As he was opening his mouth again, a different question fell from his lips, leaving him rather shocked. "I heard Sakura in my head when I was sparring with you. Is it possible she already knows of the connection between us?"

Maiya shrugged, welcoming the change of topic. "Perhaps, but I doubt it. The connection only occurs rarely, so it would be uncommon knowledge for her to know about anyway. Chances are that when she met you that day, you were projecting your thoughts openly and she just happened to hear them. Without taking time to realize you hadn't moved your lips, she too projected her thoughts, failing to do it vocally as well. I don't think that she would recognize it for what it is unless it occurred more often."

"What are you guys talking about?" Sakura asked, returning just then to catch the last few words of Maiya's explanation. "Unless what occurred more often?"

Zeke watched the fairy float over to him and land on his shoulder, sitting down and leaning backwards against his neck. "Sakura, tell me if you can hear what I'm thinking."

Sakura laughed for the first time. It was strong due to her amusement, yet it was a soft sound that was pleasant in every aspect, sending visions of warm sunlight and serene ponds. "Zeke, you are silly. There is no way I could hear your thou…" Sakura became still, the rest of her words fading into non-existence. She looked up at Zeke, wide-eyed and pointed an accusing finger at him. "_How are you doing that?_" she squeaked.

_I'm not entirely sure, but you got to admit, it could be pretty handy_. He had sent his fairy an image of her sitting on his shoulder with an accompaniment of words. It was enough to convince her of Maiya's claim, and Zeke felt somewhat pleased.

Wondering if it worked both ways, Sakura asked Zeke, with her mind, what had happened the previous night. Zeke was unprepared for this, and could not hold back the images that appeared in his mind, open for the fairy to see. Before he could close off the connection with Sakura, the memory rushed out of him, flashing in his mind's eye.

"You okay, Zeke?" Maiya asked, looking over at him. He dropped his head into his hands and rubbed his eyes.

"I'm fine. Where are we according to the map?"

With one smooth motion, Maiya whipped out the map and unrolled it so she could view it. "Well, if my calculations are correct, we are right here." She pointed at a spot next to the forest and motioned for Zeke to lean over to get a better look. "At the pace we're going, it'll take about two weeks to get to the castle. I don't understand why we had to settle in an area so far away from the original castle. From there, you could reach the port town in the south in a day, Lon Lon Ranch in half a day, and Death Mountain in two. I really hope that the queen decides to make use of the old castle now that the flood is over."

Zeke was displeased by how long it would take for them to finish their mission, but he realized that there was little that could be done and accepted that they would arrive at the castle when the lay of the land let them. Still, he wondered if straying from the forest would shorten the amount of time it would take. "Perhaps we should find another way?"

"No. We could get lost on in the field. We're better off sticking to the forest."

The prince slouched in his saddle and started to mumble about how inconvenient it was that they had to take the longest route imaginable to get to the old castle. _Do not let it bother you, Zeke. There is much fun to be had on the way there_.

Zeke scowled at the fairy. "Stay out of my head, would you?"

After a quick spar, Zeke and Maiya sat down to partake of the evening meal. Sakura was occupied with a chunk of bread that the prince had given her, and he and Maiya were similarly engaged. The silence was welcome, for everyone seemed to have something on their mind that tied up too much of their attention to have something else distract them.

When she had finished eating, Sakura flew over to Zeke's blankets and made herself a small cubbyhole that she used to sleep in. Zeke stared over at the slight disturbance in his blankets and smirked, knowing that he would have to disturb the shimmering ball of light when he decided to turn in for the night.

"Hey Maiya, what kind of creatures do think might be inhabiting the castle when we get there?"

"I don't think I know what you mean."

Zeke shrugged and continued in a way that made him seem bored and uninterested in his own words. "It's not too hard to grasp. I merely asked you what kind of creatures you think might have migrated into the castle. Maybe Lizalfos or something like that. I'll bet there are some redeads there too. I would love to fight either one of them. Just think about the ballads they would compose about us. Zeke and Maiya, redead slayers." Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pointed at imaginary beings before them. "I can see it now. We'll be walking down the streets of the castle and all the people will bow down before us, both out of awe and fear for we are the most daring warriors of our time."

Maiya pushed him away and rolled her eyes, yet smiled all the same. "Well if we run into any redeads, I'll leave them all to you."

"You're not afraid of them are you?" The prince eyed her tauntingly, positive that he had found something to use against the girl.

"No, but I don't know if I would want to fight one is all. That shriek of theirs is unnerving to say the least." She drew her sword and started to polish the blade. "They paralyze you, and then they proceed to suck out your soul. Not my thing, prince."

Zeke started to laugh, but then he froze up, spinning around to look at the trees. "Did you just hear something?"

Maiya stopped polishing her blade and looked around, frowning. "No, did you?"

He stood up and grabbed his sword, slowly approaching the forest. "I think I did…it sounded like a woman screaming. Stay here, I'll go check it out."

The girl jumped to her feet and told Zeke to sit down. "I'll admit that you're becoming a good fighter, but if someone out there needs help, then I should probably be the one to administer it." She walked into the trees and went as far as she could without losing sight of their campfire, but she found nothing of interest in the forest. Stepping back into the light of the fire she said, "I didn't see anything in the forest. Whatever you heard in there either fled or doesn't exist." Looking around, she saw that Zeke was no longer sitting by the fire like he had been when she went into the forest.

"Zeke? Where are you?" When the prince failed to answer her, she began to get angry. "Zeke, this isn't funny. Get out here now!"

"Maiya, Zeke says that he is in a little bit of trouble," Sakura said, fighting her way out of the blanket she was in. "You should probably rush to his aid before he gets hurt."

"You don't sound too worried about him. You sure he didn't ask you to say that so I would fall for a trap?"

The fairy stared at the human for a long moment before saying, "He's over there." She pointed to a clump of trees where something was reflecting the firelight. "Hurry up before he bleeds to death." She returned to her blankets saying, "What does she expect me to do? I could not help Zeke even if I wanted to."

Maiya fought back a wave of frustration and approached the clump of trees. "Zeke, what's going on?" She stopped, frozen in her tracks. Zeke was lying on his back as still as possible, holding his breath so he would not give himself away by breathing. Sniffing at his feet was a wild pig with vicious looking tusks that were capable of tearing flesh. Before the beast could realize that the body on the ground was still alive, Maiya threw her sword at it and stuck it in the pig's head.

Zeke crawled backwards and quickly rose to his feet, picking up his sword and facing the pig again. "Serves you right!"

Maiya crossed her arms and stared at him, unsure of how to feel at the moment. "What happened?" was the only thing she could think to ask.

Zeke did not give her a direct answer, mumbling about a joke and then the pig ruining it. When asked to elaborate, the prince relented. "I thought I would get you by jumping out of a tree and trying to scare you, but I fell out of the tree and it alerted that stupid pig to my presence."

"So you didn't really hear something in the forest…"

"No."

Maiya punched Zeke in the face, sending him to his back once again. "What were you thinking? This is hardly the place for you to go out and do something like that! If you would have dropped from a tree I would have cut you to pieces!"

Zeke held his face with his hands, trying to roll onto his stomach so he could get up. "Lighten up, already. It was just a joke."

"Just a joke?" she shrieked. She kicked him in the side as he was attempting to get up and stepped on the small of his back so he would have to stay on the ground. "Even if I would have taken it lightly, that pig would not have. Did it occur to you that without your sword it was more dangerous than you? It could have killed you just as easily as I killed it, and it would have done it because it felt threatened by you. When are you going to learn to think with your brain and not your funny bone?"

"That's not fair. I fell out of the tree and my sword fell too far away for me to grab it. Now let me get up, I'm bleeding and I want to take care of it." He felt Maiya's foot lift off of his back and he got to his feet, walking over to the fire and grabbing a rag to still the flow of blood oozing out of his nose.

The entire time he was cleaning the blood off his face and holding the rag under his nose, Maiya stared at him, her expression one of anger. He ignored her as best he could, but for some reason he could not stand having her look at him like that. "Please don't look at me like that," he requested softly.

"Have you stopped the bleeding?"

"Yes, I think so."

Maiya's gaze became cold. "Good." Without warning, she jumped from her spot and tackled him to the ground, putting him in a headlock. "I wouldn't want to get blood on my shirt."

"What are you doing?" He turned his head and dug his chin into her elbow, attempting to free himself of the air-constricting grip around his neck.

"I'm teaching you a lesson, that's what." She tightened her hold on his neck and flicked him in the nose with her free hand. "This is what you get for trying to mess with me."

Zeke knew that he would pass out if he were unable to find something that would release him, so, frantic, he began to fight against the headlock and looked for any weakness in Maiya's position. Luckily, he found a small gap in the lock and slipped his head out of her arm. Slipping around behind her, he weaved his arms around hers and locked his hands behind her head, rendering her arms useless.

Maiya kicked up behind her, and grinned devilishly when the arms holding hers loosened their grip and Zeke slowly fell to the ground, gasping in pain. She stood above him with her hands on her hips and watched him writhe in his agony before dropping down and attempting to force him to submit to her again. Zeke was far from incapacitated though.

Moving quickly, he did the same maneuver he had before, but this time he locked his legs around hers to keep her from kicking him again. "Now, what was that about teaching me a lesson?"

Maiya growled and fought against his hold, but to no avail. "Alright, I give. Now let me go." She stopped struggling and waited for him to comply, but he made no effort to release her from his hold. "Zeke? Did you fall asleep back there?"

He slowly let her go, making sure she was not going to attack him again as soon as she was free. Zeke retreated to his tent as soon as he had let her go to prevent her from getting any ideas. Lying on a blanket, he looked over at the girl and saw that she had a tear falling down her cheek, but she rubbed her face and the tear was gone, making him wonder if he had really seen it. As he drifted off to sleep, he could see that tear falling like liquid crystal, causing his dreams to ripple like water.


	8. Chapter 8: New Player Insert Coin

Chapter 8: New Player (Insert Coin)

"Chris, hurry up or I'll let the girls in my kendo club use you as a training dummy," Ciel yelled, gazing down the street at a small boy with shockingly blue hair. He was fiddling with something on his watch that Ciel knew was his personal assistant, an artificial intelligence that went by the name of Cerveau. As he caught up to his sister, she gave him a scrutinizing look and berated him for his lateness. "Quit messing with Cerveau or dad will have to fix him again."

The boy looked up at his sister with his dull brown eyes. "I'd rather have Cerveau ready to combat any viruses that could assault my computer than have him work out my schedule."

"Alouette can work out my schedule _and_ destroy every virus that attempts to ruin my computer. Show some discipline already." Stopping by an especially dark window, Ciel looked at her reflection and started to fix her hair.

"At least I don't have to stop at every reflective surface to fix my hair," Chris mumbled, closing the hologram he had been using to adjust Cerveau's circuits. "How's that feel, Cerveau?"

"Feels great, as usual, sir. Once again you have proven that you possess the skills to be a top-notch programmer."

Ciel ignored the comment and tied a bandana around her head to keep her hair from getting in her face, with the exception of two rogue locks that she called her antennae because of the way they always stood on end for a few inches before curving back down to hang in front of her face. "Chris, the I-just-got-out-of-bed look doesn't quite work with girls." She looked down at his watch and rolled her eyes. "Who gave you the Chivalry Program?"

Chris looked as if he had been struck in the face and stuck his nose in the air, a gesture that meant nothing to his sister due to her being taller. "Cerveau has always been a polite entity. Not every A.I. is like Alouette."

"I take offence to that," Ciel's wrist shouted, a hologram that portrayed the likeness of Alouette appearing. She pointed a finger at Chris and scowled. "I am a well mannered entity when I am treated with respect, however if you persist to insinuate that I am a foul being then I shall take that as a challenge and when I'm done with Cerveau you'll have to rebuild him from scratch." A slim saber appeared in the digital girl's hand and she twirled it threateningly.

"Calm down, Alouette," Ciel said calmly. "You know that these two are rude, so don't let them antagonize you." Turning her head to her brother, she asked, "How was your test today?"

Despite being twins, and as such were in the same grade in school, they had completely different schedules. This was due to the school's program that helped students achieve greater levels of education in the areas that would help them with the careers they had chosen. Ciel strove to be a history teacher while Chris showed promise in the world of electronics, having already programmed many of their household appliances to work according to strict settings that could not normally have been conceived.

"It wasn't too bad. Professor Agate may be a tough guy to handle, but he doesn't dish out very difficult tests. How was your stuff?"

"I had a heated argument with Warrick about the Meiji Restoration, but otherwise everything went fine."

Chris laughed. "When will he learn that he can't win a debate with you?"

"Probably on the day that he accepts I won't go out with him."

They both laughed and turned a corner, running into a couple classmates that were also walking home. They walked together, chatting about classes and other things. While the conversations were typical for high school students, Chris and Ciel were far from typical and only engaged in the discussion to pass the time. Upon their parting, the twins both sighed out of relief and strode up to their front door.

A digital woman appeared before them, startling Chris who had only just turned his gaze to the door. "You're late."

"Sorry, Rocinolle," Ciel said apologetically, giving a short bow. "Chris is slow as usual, and I, being responsible, could not in good conscience leave him behind to hasten my trip home."

The woman scowled and rolled her eyes. "Still thy silver tongue, girl. I have no time for your witty remarks. Your mother wishes to speak to the both of you before you attend to your homework and afterwards pursue whatever you fancy." She disappeared and the door opened, allowing them entrance.

"Is that you, Ciel?" someone asked from inside the home.

"Yes, mom. We're home." Ciel hopped over a robotic vacuum cleaner as it approached her, appearing to chastise her for wearing her shoes in the house. "Where are you?"

"In the kitchen, honey."

Chris kicked his shoes off and tossed his backpack up the stairs to land outside his room. "Rocinolle said that you wanted to talk to us?"

"That's right," came the voice of their mother. "Your father is coming home tonight, so I want you two to clean your rooms."

Chris and Ciel gave each other irritated looks. "Mom, we don't have messy rooms," Ciel said, stepping into the kitchen. Their mother was busy preparing dinner, their father's favorite meal by the looks of it. "Remember? We are not like the other children that inhabit this city."

"You told me to clean my room yesterday," Chris said, crossing his arms. "And you gave me the same reason too."

"Right, right. I'm sorry. I'm just a little on edge because I haven't seen him in two months." Their mother looked like a bigger mess than the house did. Her hair was escaping the bun she had put it in, and the little amount of makeup she had put on was already ruined from whatever she had done that day while they were at school. "The life of a wife is not easy when your husband works for the world's most popular gaming company."

Ciel pulled her mother away from the stove, sat her in a chair, and gave her a cup of coffee to calm her nerves. "It's going to be okay, mom. You just need to relax and remember that dad is going to look awful like he usually does when he's gone for extended periods of time and forgets to take care of himself."

After succeeding in getting their mother to relax, Chris and Ciel went upstairs to the entertainment room. Neither had any homework to do, so they went ahead and did whatever they wanted. Chris immediately plugged his watch into his laptop and opened up his customization program. Ciel went to their Revolution and started to play Megaman X5, a newer version of the classic game that used better graphics and a 3D world opposed to the original side scrolling style that the game had used when it was first made.

"I don't understand how you can play that game when you already know what's going to happen," Chris said without turning to look at his sister. "For someone who claims to be in love with Zero, you sure love watching him die."

Ciel growled at him and gave him a fierce glare. "For your information, Zero doesn't die in this game. How else could he appear in his own series that takes place two hundred years later?"

"He gets blown in half. Same difference."

Ciel grinned and gave him a dangerous look. "Besides, don't you always play the Legend of Zelda games to get a good look at Zelda? You're quite the hypocrite you know."

"Malon."

"I stand corrected," she said sarcastically.

He turned in his chair and frowned. "I've seen you die hundreds of times playing the Legend of Zelda games because you can't take your eyes off of Link. At least I only have a few cut scenes to stare at. You stare at your attractions through out the entire games."

She threw a large pillow at him and told him to shut his mouth so she could hear the dialogue being spoken. It was the part where Zero was saying that he would pilot the spacecraft that would crash into the side of the colony Eurasia, a favorite of Ciel's because it made the blonde swordsman appear to be the bravest reploid at the hunter base.

"Hello? Is anybody home?"

Ciel dropped her controller, and Chris looked up from his computer, then both ran for the door of the room, wrenched it open, and, as a result of trying to make it to the stairs first, fell down the flight of stairs and landed at their father's feet. The crash was enough to startle the man into jumping back, but he quickly regained his composure and laughed.

"Well, if it isn't my lovely children. Fighting each other to get to me first. I'm quite touched by your eagerness to see me." He helped his children to their feet and pulled them into a hug. "I missed you two so much."

Ciel held onto her father a bit longer than Chris, having always been his little girl. When she let go, he ruffled her hair, much to her displeasure, like he would a young boy. "Dad, stop. You're supposed to do that to Chris, not me."

"His hair's already messy though."

"Ha! In your face, Ciel!"

"Now where is your mother?" He disappeared into the kitchen, and Chris and Ciel heard a squeal and what sounded like a chair falling to the floor, but then there was silence and they knew that entering the kitchen would be a bad idea.

Chris stretched, grimacing as he did. "Well, dad's home."

"I can see that for myself, Chris." Ciel wrung her hands nervously, wondering what happened to allow her father a break from work. He would come home every few months if something really good happened, or something really bad happened. Either way, she knew that her father's eyes were for their mother, and not his children. "I'm going to go start on some homework, or something. Call me when dinner's ready."

Chris felt the same way as his sister, however he never had much of a relationship with his father and was hardly bothered by being neglected. "Whatever. Try not to mourn your lover's death too much." With his back turned, he could not see the shoe that had been thrown at him. The black Puma hit him in the back of the head, causing him to bite his tongue. He gave her a dirty hand gesture and threw the shoe back, but she caught it and returned it to her foot.

"So, how has school been going for you two?" Their father asked, cutting a piece of beef into smaller pieces.

Chris boasted about his high grades in all of his subjects, more than happy to show off for his father. "I've maintained a 4.0 grade point average all year."

"That's good to hear, Chris. How about you, Ciel? Have you improved in math?"

Ciel bent her head forward, afraid to let share her grades with her father. Seeing her discomfort, her mother changed the subject to something else that would not diminish Ciel's demeanor any more. "Ciel, sweetie, why don't you tell your father about the success of your short film?"

Her father did not appear pleased by the change of direction, but said nothing as his daughter told him about a project she did for extra credit in history class that consisted of a film about some historical figure in Japanese history. "And how is filming a fictional story about a sword carrying rogue name Moo-Sushi helping your education?"

"Musashi, dad, and the film got the attention of a Japanese History teacher over seas. His university has offered me a full ride scholarship to go over there and study."

"Where is the school?"

"Tokyo."

"And where are you now?"

Ciel frowned, not seeing how this mattered. "Seattle Washington."

"Well then you see the problem now, don't you? It's too expensive to pay for a passport and airfare to have you flown over there."

"But dad, it's a full ride scholarship. It pays for all of my schooling, which includes my book fee. They'll pay for my entire education. Isn't it worth paying a few hundred dollars to get me over there so I can reap the benefits of a good university?"

The look he gave her silenced her immediately. "If it were for something more profitable and respectable, I would consider it, but seeing as it's not I have no choice but to say no."

"What do you have against me becoming a history teacher? How is that not a respectable job?" she shouted. "What could be more respectable than teaching the future generations about history?"

"Nothing. I have no problem with you wanting to become a teacher, Ciel. What bothers me is your lack of interest in your own country. America is a great place if you'd just open your eyes to it instead of burying yourself in this nonsense from Japan."

"But you work with Japanese people all the time!"

"And they are American citizens who love this country. I am ashamed to have a daughter that takes no pride in her ethnic background."

Ciel stood up so fast that her chair was knocked over. Unable to find the words to describe how furious she was, she strode out of the dining room and screamed out of frustration. Chris winced as he heard the sound of shattering glass and then the slamming of a door that he knew full well would be locked. "Bad move, old man."

"Chris, you're grounded."

The boy smirked and looked at his mom. "Something tells me that I'm getting off the hook this time. Later." He left the room despite his father's commands that he sit back down. Waiting out of sight, he listened to his father tell his mother how both Ciel and himself were lacking in the discipline department and how they both needed to be punished for their behavior. He had heard it all before, his father would make Ciel cry, then she would storm out and then he would say something disrespectful. His father would say he was grounded, and he would pretend to be compliant, but then father would leave and mother would tell him that he was no longer on probation. It was a circle that occurred every time that man entered their home, and Chris thought that it could all be avoided if their mother would just divorce the man.

Going upstairs, he knocked on Ciel's door, saying, "Hey, sis, open up."

"No, go away." Her voice was jumping around in pitch, meaning that she was crying.

"Chris, you and Cerveau can go eat dirt. We will be fine without your pointless assistance," Alouette said acidly.

Plugging his watch into a port on the doorknob, he pressed a couple buttons and said, "You know the drill, Cerveau."

"Yes sir." Within a few seconds, the door was unlocked, and Chris slowly entered, cautious not to be too invasive. On previous occasions he had entered Ciel's room, much to his chagrin, to find her stripping on her way to the bathroom so she could sit in the shower and cry without anyone being able to hear her. He prayed that this would not be a repeat of one of those days because it would mean that there would be no hot water for a couple days.

He listened hard, looking for the tell tale sounds of running water or clothes hitting the floor. The only thing he could hear were Ciel's muffled sobs. _She's using a pillow this time_, he sighed, relieved. "Ciel? Are you presentable?"

Chris heard his sister sniff, hard, and cough before saying, "As much as I can be when distraught." There was a pause where neither said anything, but Ciel wanted to be done with people for the day and thought it best if she finished up with her brother quickly. "What do you want?"

With a shrug that she could not see, he said, "Well, I know that you always like watching me play through LoZ games, so I thought I would throw that offer out there for you. Since it's a Friday I'll probably catch some anime before turning on the Revolution, but with no school tomorrow I plan on staying up all night. You're welcome to join me whenever you want." He closed the door and waited, standing with his arms slightly outstretched. Just as he predicted, the door opened again and Ciel pulled him into a hug.

No words were said for the duration of the embrace, but neither had to say anything. It was nothing they had not endured before, and at this point they could imagine in their heads what the other wanted to say. After a few moments had passed, Ciel retreated back into her room and Chris could hear the sound of running water from out in the hall. "She'll be along in a few. Good work, Cerveau."

"As always, you are too kind."

Chris had just finished watching an anime called Naruto, an anime that had started airing in America nearly fifty years before but still producing new episodes and going strong, when Ciel snuck into the entertainment room with her hair wet and in her pajamas. Shutting the door behind her, she plugged her cell phone into the locking mechanism to let Alouette transfer herself into the computer that controlled the lock to help Cerveau keep their father out. "I called Izumi and asked her if she wanted to come over. I hope you don't mind."

Chris grinned out of his sister's sight. He had a crush on Ciel's best friend and felt no problem with the girl gracing them with her presence. "I don't mind. Better unlock the window so she can get in." The one odd thing about their Japanese friend was that she had an aversion to using doors, or rather doors with hinges. Her home was made in the traditional Japanese style with the high outer wall that surrounded the house. The gate had the only hinged door while all the rest were sliding doors. Chris could vaguely remember hearing a story about how Izumi had been hit by a door that swung open after one of her older brothers had kicked it open.

On the other hand, Izumi would always justify her use of their windows by saying that she was trying to keep her body in shape. It was a good enough excuse for them, so they never pressed her to use the door, and on this night it was better that she came through the window.

"What happened on Naruto?" Ciel asked, ironically wearing her pajama pants that had the face of the character Naruto all over them.

"Just stuff. Messing around as hokage like always." He crawled over to the cabinet that possessed their plethora of games and looked at the Legend of Zelda shelf. It had never occurred to him how odd it was that they had games that were nearly sixty years old that still worked. On the bottom shelf was a collection of older game systems that he had refurbished to working condition so they could play all their old games. There was a N64, a black Gamecube, a Wii, and a few other systems that had come out afterwards. The latest from the brilliant minds at Nintendo was given the name of the project name for the Wii before it was released as the Wii, the Revolution.

"Which one should we play?"

Ciel had sat down on a couch and was attempting to force her hair to submit to her will and behave. "Well, with Izumi coming over, let's play Super Smash Bros. Apocalypse for a little while so that we're not just sitting here watching you play. I'd still like to, but I feel obligated to keep Izumi entertained, and you know how hard that is when she's not doing something."

"Right."

Ciel's phone started to vibrate and played an old song called Broken, making them both jump. Reaching over and flipping open the phone, Ciel gave a simple "Hello?"

"Hey sweetie, how are you doing?" It was their mom.

"I'm okay." Chris gave her a look and asked her who it was, and she gestured towards the floor where, ten feet down, their kitchen was.

"What are you up to?"

"Chris and I are in the entertainment room."

There was an amused groan before her mother said, "Is that why I just saw Izumi climbing up the side of our house?"

"Hey you two!" Chris and Ciel looked behind them and waved at Izumi as she fell through the window and onto the floor. She gave Ciel a quick hug before taking a seat in between her and Chris.

"Yeah, Izumi came over at my request. We were going to play Super Smash Bros." The line went dead and Ciel stared at her phone with a frown. "She hung up."

"Don't just sit there, help your mom through the window." Startled, all three of the teens jumped, but then ran over to offer aid to the woman whose hand was waving just above the windowsill. When they had pulled her through the window, she sat down and wiped a light layer of sweat off her brow. "How you do that all the time is beyond me, Izumi."

"It comes with practice, Mrs. P," Izumi said with a smile, causing Chris to lose himself in her pretty face.

"If you wanted to come in, we would have opened the door for you," Ciel mumbled, feeling guilty about her mother climbing up the side of the house.

Their mother waved this off with a grin and chuckled. "I'm a stay at home mom. I need more excitement in my life. Would you like me to get some snacks before we start playing?"

"You play videogames?" Izumi asked, staring at Mrs. Phoenix in awe.

"I was playing videogames when I was your age, young lady." She left the room in order to grab a case of soda and some other snack items, popcorn, licorice, candy, etc., and when she returned she had a smirk on her face. "Well, your father just got called back to work so we won't have him intruding on our teen's night."

"Ah, mom I'm sorry," Ciel moaned, feeling bad that she did not make the short visit pleasant.

"It's all good, honey," Mrs. Phoenix said with a sweet smile. "Now we can be as loud and obnoxious as we want and we won't get in trouble." She laughed and picked up a controller. "Come on, let's get started already."


	9. Chapter 9: A Strange New World

Chapter 9: A Strange New World

"Well, if we're going to play like this, then I want to be on Ciel's team," Izumi declared, wrapping an arm around her friend's shoulders. They were at the character select screen, and regardless of there being one more player than usual, the girl knew that Chris and Ciel would massacre anyone who was an opponent.

"That's fine, I like having help," Ciel smiled. She grabbed a piece of licorice and put one end of it in her mouth, chewing on it halfheartedly. Her cursor landed on Zelda, changing her outfit color to blue, and then changing the overhead name to her own.

"Come on, Ciel, you always choose Zelda," Chris said with a frown. "Why don't you ever change it up?"

"You always pick Marth, so don't give me that crap."

"What's Marth from again?" Izumi asked.

Mrs. Phoenix surprised them all by saying, "He is from the Fire Emblem franchise. I believe he was featured in a game that was exclusive to Japan." Her own cursor fell on Kirby, giggling and saying, "Isn't he cute?"

Izumi chose to play as Princess Peach. "Ha, the princesses teaming up to battle a pink ball of goop and a hot warrior from Japan, I almost feel bad about beating in his pretty face."

"Like I'll let you."

"_Ready? Go!_" the game cried.

Zelda sped right for Marth, grabbing him and tossing him into the air where she hit him with a flurry of physical attacks that wracked up enough damage for her to kick him and send him flying off the screen. She then directed her attention on the pink poof ball name Kirby, who at the moment was busy eating Princess Peach. Picking up a Bob-omb, Zelda threw it at Kirby and the resulting explosion tossed the hero of Dreamland into the sky where he disappeared in a tiny wink of light. Feeling like she was off to a good start, Zelda spun around and curtsied, taking a moment to gloat.

Marth then sprung an assault on the princess of Hyrule using a scope rifle, getting her stuck in a steady stream of little yellow bullets. He then rushed forward and went into a combo of sword slashes that the princess had a hard time dodging and countering. While the warrior and the princess grappled, Kirby and Peach were exchanging blows, neither side seeming to have the higher ground.

Peach spun and, using her momentum, thrust her hip into Kirby, but the puffball had opened his mouth and inhaled Peach, altering his appearance to have a crown similar to Peach's. He then pulled up a turnip and threw it at Peach, knocking her off a ledge where she fell down off screen.

Marth had finally managed to time a smash attack just right and sent Zelda flying over the stage and into the sky. He turned his attention to Kirby, but realized a bit too late that the pink hero was beating at a floating ball with the Super Smash Bros. logo on it. He shot up into the sky using a dolphin slash, but he was too late, and was left vulnerable.

Zelda was the only one who had found a safe refuge when Kirby unleashed his final smash attack. The players on the screen were replaced by a cut scene of Kirby sucking up multiple elements and becoming an ultimate being, unleashing a torrent of cyclones, fireballs, icicles, and boulders.

Marth was launched off screen along with Peach, temporarily leaving Zelda and Kirby alone on the screen. Zelda, taking advantage of Kirby's momentary vulnerability after using the powerful attack, shot across the screen and sent a wave of Din's Fire that gave the powder puff no where to run. Kirby attempted to attack Zelda as she came near, but she disappeared using Farore's Wind, and reappeared behind him, hitting him with an exploding punch that sent him halfway across the screen where Marth was waiting to take his revenge. Charging his blade several seconds before the pink baseball got near him, he brought it down just as Kirby came in range of the tip of the blade and sent him soaring.

Peach and Zelda decided to double-team the man, coming from both sides and attacking. He jumped and back flipped over Peach, picking up a homerun bat and hitting a grand slam using Peach as a baseball.

Zelda appeared above Marth and kicked him in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground. She found a party ball on the other side of the map and ran to it, hitting it and activating it. Inside were a plethora of motion sensor bombs that Zelda, with an evil grin, threw all over the map in every direction. She laughed maniacally as Kirby fell prey to the potent blast of a bomb.

Fifteen minutes passed, and Marth and Zelda were the only ones still capable of fighting. Peach considered stealing one of Zelda's lives, but reconsidered knowing that she could aid her in another way when the time came. The stock battle was coming to a close, both combatants had merely two lives left, and they both had sustained a substantial amount of damage. Charging at each other, they knew that even if they succeeded in sending the other off the map, they would just come back and do the same thing, so Zelda sacrificed herself to gain an edge over the other, returning and throwing Marth into a bomb and watching him fly away.

She ran to one end of the stage and waited for Marth to return. When he did, he took his place at the other end of the map. Kirby and Peach watched with intense stares, wondering who could possibly win in this battle. Then, it was floating in the middle of the screen, a final smash token. Marth saw it, Zelda saw it, and at the same time they both ran for it. Out of desperation, Zelda cried, "Izumi! Chris's Demise K-Formation!"

Izumi leaned towards Chris and planted a kiss on his cheek, giving Ciel the distraction she needed to strike the final smash token. She ended the diversion operation to allow Chris a chance to fight back, but it was already too late. Zelda landed right in front of Marth and activated her final smash.

The screen went black, and then Link and Zelda approached each other on screen, brandishing their swords and kicking Marth up into the air. They jumped up to meet him, slashing and striking him with a fury from which there was no escape. Link gave Zelda a salute then disappeared from the screen, allowing Zelda the pleasure of ending the match. She held up her hand and started gathering light that turned into a bow and arrow. Drawing back the arrow, she said, "It's over!" and launched the arrow at Marth. It struck him in the chest and sent him flying off screen.

"_This game's winner is…Zelda!_"

"Wow, that was fun!" Mrs. Phoenix laughed, clapping her hands together and giving Izumi a sweet smile. "However, next time you do that to my Chris you're going to owe him dinner and a movie."

"I don't think I would mind that too much," the girl said nervously.

Ciel rolled her eyes. "You two just need to hook up already. You both like each other, so hurry up and get it over with."

They all laughed and started another round of Super Smash Bros., this time switching up the teams so that Ciel and her mother were against Chris and Izumi. They played for a couple hours before Izumi's parents called and said that she needed to go home, and by that time, Mrs. Phoenix was feeling tired and said she was going to bed.

"Well that was fun," Ciel commented when it was just the two of them remaining in the room. "What did you think of Chris's Demise K-Formation?" Chris said nothing and went to change the game disc, hearing his heart beating in his head. Ciel laughed and spread out on the couch, pulling a blanket over her body. "To think, I could have lost that battle if Izumi had been too shy to do it. Man I'm lucky to have her as a friend." She reached out and picked up the box for the game Chris had just put in and smiled. "I love this one. The Legend of Zelda: The Crimson Blade. You get to see Link without his shirt in this one."

Chris gave her a disgusted look. "Is that all you think about?"

Ciel closed her eyes and shook her head slowly. "No. Most of the time I'm thinking about Zero, but he's not even human so that puts a damper on my spirits. He may be a highly advanced reploid with emotions and everything, but I doubt he would pay a simple girl like me any heed."

"Ciel, you're insane."

"I know. Just play the game." For some reason she felt great satisfaction watching Link run around Hyrule field killing monsters. The man was a legend, and being able to sit down and see him traverse through his many quests was amazing to say the least. "Hey Chris, where are you right now?"

He opened up the map and frowned. "To be honest, I don't know. I've never been here before, and I don't even show up on the map." He closed it and continued walking through a forested mountainside.

"There's a guy right there," Ciel said, pointing at a man with long white hair. "Talk to him and maybe he'll tell you where you are."

Chris guided Link to the mysterious figure and had Link talk to him. The man said, "To reach the land of legend, you must use the Wind of the Goddess."

"Wind of the Goddess? Farore's Wind, maybe?"

Chris shrugged and opened his inventory. "Couldn't hurt, I guess." He equipped the tome that held the spell and executed it. A cyclone came down from the sky and swept up Link, bathing the screen with an eerie green light. The room seemed to darken, extinguishing all light except for that of the TV screen.

"Chris? What's going on?" Ciel asked, sitting up and wrapping the blanket around her tightly, nervous.

"I don't know." He looked around, but then groaned when he noticed that the swirling green cyclone was still on the screen. "Great, it froze, and I had just found something interesting too." Crawling forward, he switched off the console and sighed. "That sucks."

"Chris…"

"What?"

Ciel was pointing at the still swirling screen, feeling scared. She stood to her feet and slowly approached the screen, dropping to her knees in front of it. "It's still swirling." She reached out and gently touched a finger to the screen. The swirling stopped, but seemed to gather around the spot where her fingertip was touching the glass. Then, a burst of light, Ciel felt like she was spinning at a rapid rate, her surroundings, though a blur, were becoming brighter, something was holding onto her waist, and then she hit something hard, knocking her unconscious.

* * *

"Where do you think she came from, the Arcane Tower?"

"I don't know, but she doesn't look very good. She must have hit her head when she came out the other side of the tunnel."

"Damn it, whoever's training the mages nowadays needs to be more careful. These kids could have been really hurt."

"Go get Lady Aurora. She'll know what to do."

Ciel's eyes fluttered open and she saw two men standing over her. One carried a staff and was dressed in an outfit that depicted authority while the other was in possession of a sword and dressed in armor. They seemed to be worried about her, for what reason she knew not, but that was far from disconcerting. Sitting up, she found herself in a lovely garden. _This must be a dream_, she thought, smiling. Looking around, she noticed that Chris was lying near by, still unconscious. _And Chris is here too_.

"You're okay!" the remaining man exclaimed, taking a knee and reaching out his arms to help support her. "Or are you? You hit your head pretty hard, young lady. What were you doing using Farore's Wind anyway? You should know better than to use a spell like that without supervision. Need I remind you of the boy we found in a wall because he thought he could perform the spell but failed to do it correctly?"

He reached for Ciel's hand, but she drew back. "Who are you?" she asked, looking him up and down. He had a kind face, and appeared to be around the same age as her dad.

"My name is Terence, Sir Terence if you wish to be formal," he said, smiling. "And what's your name?"

"Ciel."

"Now that's a lovely name. I take it this is a friend of yours?" He indicated Chris, and Ciel nodded.

"He's my brother."

"Ah, I see. You two have similar features, I should have been able to see that." Ciel tried to stand up, but he made her sit. "Now, now, Ciel. I don't think you realize just how hard you hit your head. Just stay seated and help will be here soon."

Ciel inspected the garden from where she was sitting, taking in the appearance. "Where am I?"

The man, Terence, seemed disheartened by this. "You're in the castle garden, Ciel."

"Castle garden?"

"More generically, you're in the city of New Castle Town." When Ciel continued to look at him inquisitorially, he said, "Hyrule?"

She felt an immediate surge of elation at this. "I'm in Hyrule?" When he nodded, she laughed and fell to her back, stretching out in the grass. "I've never been to Hyrule in my dreams before. This is cool. I wonder where Link and Zelda are, or if Ganondorf will appear and lay siege to the land. I wonder if I'll get to help Link defeat him! That would be so cool."

Terence stared at her with a painfully worried expression. "Ciel, this isn't a dream. But to answer your questions, Queen Zelda is in the throne room taking care of land distribution, Ganondorf never willfully attacked us, he was being manipulated by a dark power that Link cleansed from his body, and Link disappeared quite some time ago."

Ciel frowned. "Well that's unusual, but my dear friend, this is too a dream. How could it not be? I was sitting at home, playing videogames with my brother, and I must have fallen asleep. This is all one amazing dream." She smiled and continued. "Why else would I be in Hyrule? I mean, look at me. I'm still wearing my pajamas. A spaghetti strap top that is a little too revealing and Naruto pajama pants that make my butt look big. I wouldn't wear this in public even if I was dead."

She turned and looked at Chris. "And why else would he be here? Chris and I don't go anywhere together with the exception of school. Sure he's my twin and all, but we're not exactly the best of friends. Just you watch, any minute now Alouette is going to set off my alarm and I'm going to wake up in my bed back home."

Terence was about to say something, but someone had come up behind him and he stood to greet the older woman. "Ah, Lady Aurora. I'm glad you came with such haste."

"Drop the formalities, Terence. What are we dealing with here?" The woman had an aura of respect that emanated so strongly that Ciel could only stare at her with wonder. Aurora motioned for the two men to help her sit down, and she regarded Ciel with a pleasant smile. "What's your name?" Ciel told her and she gave a similar response to Terence's. "Tell me how you wound up here in the castle garden."

Ciel, feeling rather amused, told the woman about her day, starting with going to school and ending with the TV malfunction. Judging by the look on Aurora's face, the woman had not understood very much of the story, and Ciel tried hard not to laugh. "And now I'm dreaming, present in the wonderful land of Hyrule."

Aurora rose to her feet looking troubled. "Rohd, take the boy to my quarters. He'll appreciate waking up in a bed I would think. Terence, take Ciel with you to get her something a little more modest to wear and take her to Roland's office."

"Yes ma'am. Is there anything else you would like me to do?"

Aurora shook her head and pointed at the other man. "He'll take care of everything else I need." She left with Rohd and Chris, leaving Ciel with Terence.

"Well, we can't have you walking around the castle looking like that. Come with me and I'll find you something a little more suitable to wear." He offered his hand to help her up, asking, "Think you can stand?"

Ciel took the proffered hand and pulled herself up, rising to her feet. She stood tall, but was a little unsteady, grateful that she had the man there help to her. "I'm okay." She followed him into the castle where he led her to a room full of fabric. "What is this room?"

Terence smiled. "This is my room. Before I became a knight I was a tailor, I made clothes for people, and I prided myself in being reasonable for my customers." He strode forward and grabbed a ball covered with pins and a measuring tape. "Since I became a knight it was hard to run a business like that, so I only take special orders now. It doesn't normally pay well, but I get a room in the castle and my pay for training the kids in military school is more than generous." He inspected Ciel for a moment. "What style would suit you best? Though it's uncommon, it wouldn't be the first time I've made pants for a girl if you would prefer that. The queen was the worst when she was around your age."

He asked her to pick out a color, and she chose a few earthy colors. "I think I would like a skirt if you wouldn't mind too much. Normally I prefer pants, but it's kind of warm here and I think I would like to have something with a little more ventilation."

Terence nodded. "Good reasoning. I'll try to find a way to keep it as cool as possible. Even though it's autumn we're still getting some of the summer's heat." He asked her to hold out her arms and to stand in other positions so he could take measurements. "You seem to be the same size as one of my students, give or take a couple inches here and there, and your bust is a bit bigger than hers. You'll be fairly easy to outfit." Brandishing a pair of scissors, he began to cut the fabric with a precision that came from years of practice.

"It seems like only yesterday when Maiya, my student, was in here getting outfitted herself. She was wearing an outfit that had seen its' better days many years ago, nothing but rags. Poor girl. She's dressing quite well now, being my star student. She will make a great warrior."

Ciel let the man ramble. He seemed to enjoy talking to someone, so she decided to let him talk. Something was beginning to bother her though. Normally her dreams had more action in them, but this was dragging on forever and it seemed so unimportant. Why was she wasting her time listening to this man blather about his student?

"Anyway, I hope this outfit works for you. Green for the top, brown for the skirt, and then you can use this red strip for a sash. Simple, but it'll have to do for now since I can see you don't have any rupees on you, not that I expect payment for this. I haven't been paid for my work in quite some time. The queen only insists on paying me for the work I do for her because she's a truly noble soul and can't stand accepting my highest quality work for free."

Terence finished the skirt and shirt and handed them to Ciel. "There you go. You can go into the washroom to change. I'll be waiting outside for you." He left his room and gave her some privacy.

Ciel changed quickly, pulling on the shirt and skirt. When she reached for the sash, she paused then reached for the scissors and cut a sizable portion off that she used to tie around her head to keep her hair back, her antennae bouncing as she gave her head a shake to see if it would stay on. Satisfied, she wrapped the sash around her waist. Having cut it, she had to improvise to make it look good, tying it so that one end fell to her knees while the other was merely a short piece that stuck out at a weird angle. _It'll have to do for now_,_ at least until I wake up from this dream_.

When she walked out into the hall, Terence gave his approval of the alteration to the outfit, saying that it suited her better. "Come with me now, if you'd please. The king will be along soon, so let us not keep him waiting."

"The king?"

"King Roland, knight of Hyrule. More specifically, he's a member of the Order of Crimson Tears that Link formed seventeen years ago. He, like myself and six others, became a knight to rid Hyrule of the tyranny that the knights before us had spread. It was no easy task, but we succeeded in having them removed of their positions, and now they are merely Council members that we pay very little heed to."

"Interesting," Ciel muttered. It was becoming clear to her that this was not the Hyrule she was familiar with, but something entirely different. A little beast inside her was wailing its' discomfort at being away from home, and she felt a wave of fear chill her skin as she began to consider the horrible possibility that she was not dreaming. A man passed by and gave Terence a quick greeting, causing her to stop walking and turn to get a second look. _It's him_. "Sir Terence, who was that man?"

Terence smiled. "Sir Calintz, also one of the Crimson Tears. He's the youngest of our group at the age of twenty-five. He joined us at the age of seven, and he's been a fierce friend and warrior. Although…he's got a quick temper, so it would be best to chew on your words before spitting them out when speaking with him." He turned at the end of the hall and opened a door, gesturing for Ciel to enter.

Ciel looked at the room and frowned. When they had said it was the king's office, she had expected a wooden desk and uncomfortable chairs, but it was unlike any office she had ever seen. In the middle of the room was a short table, and positioned around it were soft looking couches.

Behind her she felt someone's hands pushing her into the room, and turned to see Terence and a new man that she had never seen before. "Take a seat Ciel Phoenix," the man said calmly, gazing into her eyes. "We have much to discuss."

Ciel backed away from him fearfully, the beast inside her howling with discomfort. "How do you know my name?"


	10. Chapter 10: Explanations

Chapter 10: Explanations

"How do you know my name?" Ciel backed into one of the couches and fell backwards over it, uttering a gasp as her skirt fell to cover her face instead of her legs like it was supposed to. She struggled to her feet and beat the skirt back down, looking at the men with her face burning. They had averted their eyes when she had started to fall, offering her the courtesy of privacy. Still blushing in embarrassment, she went over to the furthest couch and bowed her head to hide her face, clutching at her skirt so hard that her knuckles were white.

Roland took a seat across the table from her and asked Terence if he would go to the kitchens to get some tea and pastries. Terence left with a bow, leaving Ciel alone with the king. "You must be confused, Ciel, and I'll try my best to explain, but I have to admit that there are some things you may not immediately understand. However, I feel that you have many questions and I'll allow you to ask a few before I go into my explanation."

Ciel was silent at first, but he had judged right, for a thousand questions came to her mind. "You're the king?"

"Yes I am. King Roland, born in the original Castle Town. I am thirty-seven years old, and I'm married to the queen, Zelda. I am second in command of the Crimson Tears under Sir Calintz, who is our leader while Sir Link is absent from the castle."

She asked him questions about Ganondorf, and why the castle was moved, and if he knew where Link went. It was shocking, to say the least, to hear that Ganondorf had become an ambassador of the Gerudo people after he had been cleansed of the darkness in his body, and that on a regular basis he would come to the castle and have tea with the king and queen. He then explained that eighteen years before, a man named Gill had joined forces with the bordering country of Ardor to take over Hyrule. The resulting battle had wounded one of the knights, but the enemy forces were unsuccessful in taking over the country.

However, using the last of his strength, Gill brought a rain that did not stop until the land of Hyrule was under the ocean. Up until the present, the land of Hyrule had been flooded and everyone was forced to find mountaintops to live on. The only people who escaped the torrential waters were the Gorons, who sealed all their tunnels except for the ones that were above the water line, and the Zora who had no need to move since their home was in the water.

"Link went off at Zelda's request to find a way to rid the land of the flood waters, and while the flood is gone, Link has not yet returned to us. I would assume that he is dead, but the Knights of the Crimson Tears all wear magical bracelets that let us know when anyone from our order is in trouble. If Link died, we would all know it."

Ciel digested the information slowly, making sure she understood everything he had told her. She had but one question left that she needed answered, but it was hard for her to voice. "This…isn't a dream…is it?" Everything was too real to be a dream. She could feel, hear, smell, taste, and see too much for it all to be false.

Roland slowly shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Ciel. You are very much awake in the land of Hyrule." He waited to see her reaction, knowing that something drastic was about to happen. "By a form of Farore's Wind, you have come to us."

_Not…a dream?_ Ciel felt tears rising and becoming dammed up before they could reach her tear ducts. She started to lose control of her lungs, unable to maintain a steady flow of air. Her nose started to run, but she made no motion to stem the flow. Trying her best to control herself, she asked, "How and why am I here?"

"I do not know what being brought you here, however it was prophesied many years ago that a girl and a boy from another world would come to us. A wind shaman from the village of Zephyr made that prediction, and while he did not fully understand it himself, he explained that Farore's Wind is a living wind that has a mind of its' own. He said that it is possible for one to leave our realm entirely if you can picture a place in another world. It has been done many times to explore the stars, however none have returned and it was deemed too dangerous. It is now taboo to do it."

"And you think…that's what happened to me and Chris?"

Roland nodded. "Yes, I believe so. I don't know how you got here exactly since I doubt you know how to perform that spell, but that is what we believe happened." He leaned forward and gave her a smile. "Your coming is a good sign to my people. The prophecy says that you will aid us to help better our country. I must say I'm rather excited that you have finally arrived."

Ciel could take no more. The tears that had been building up poured down her cheeks like stinging hot waterfalls, blurring her vision. Her sobs echoed off of the stone walls and added to her distress. Falling onto her side, she curled up in the fetal position, telling herself that it was just a dream and that Alouette would wake her up soon. "This is just a dream! This is just a dream! A horrible, horrible dream! Alouette please wake me!"

Roland decided to let the girl grieve by herself and left the room to wait for Terence to return from the kitchens. Ciel cried herself to sleep, feeling strangely exhausted, but she knew as she was drifting off that this was the final confirmation that she was no longer dreaming.

_Where am I? This doesn't look like home. Stone walls, high windows, this place looks like…crap, where's Ciel when you need her. She could tell me what era this place is. Oh well, I'll just have to figure it out without her_. Rising from his bed, Chris walked around the strange room with an air of curiosity. Upon the walls were a few portraits of massive proportions, depicting healers and miracles. Hanging on one of the walls were a series of pictures that Chris went over to inspect.

There were three pictures, and each had something different on them. The first was that of a young boy. His hair was a mess and he was covered with mud, but the smile he had was from ear to ear. Chris thought it looked like one of his pictures that his mom kept on her desk at home.

The second picture was of a strong looking man in his twenties. Dressed in armor, he was clearly a high-ranking individual that commanded respect among his peers. Chris thought that he could possibly be the same boy in the first picture, and was shocked by the change in appearance.

The final picture was of a group of people, a few of which Chris recognized. The man in the second picture was in the middle, laughing so hard that a bigger man with grizzly looking hair on his right had to support him. To the man's left was a timid looking man with little muscle build but a kind smile that warmed Chris inside and out. Continuing to the left was a woman who appeared to be pregnant and quite happy. Holding her hand and half hiding behind her was a small boy around the age of seven. To the right, next to the man with the kind smile was a youth that had a jovial look about him that reflected a great sense of humor to Chris. Standing behind the man in the middle was a man who was smiling, but only halfheartedly. He appeared to be haunted by something that he kept hidden away. Lying below everyone was a muscular man who looked as if he had been forced down, positioned so that he appeared to be trying to get up.

The two people that caught his attention more than anyone else in the picture though, were a blonde couple on the far right. The man had his arms around the girl standing next to him, and they both were looking at each other with such adoration that it was almost painful with how obvious their affection was for each other. Chris reached up to take the picture down so he could get a closer look and realized that he knew who they were.

"My son and the Crimson Tears." Chris turned around to see an elderly woman approaching him from the other side of the room. She had a smile on her face and she walked with an elegance that betrayed her age. Though her face was wrinkled, he could see that she had a haughty look to her.

"Who?"

The woman took the picture from his hands and turned it so they could both see. "Starting from the left, you've got Calintz, Midori, Grogh, Fandarel who's my son and is in the other pictures, behind him is Roland, below is Reeve, then Terence, Brudegan, then Link and Zelda. Together they were the Crimson Tears, a group of knights that were righteous and just. I'm very proud to be the mother of one, however I feel as if I could be the mother to them all, with the exception of young Calintz who would have to be my grandchild. Their leader, Link, disbanded them, but only three of them left. The rest found ways to make themselves useful here and they all await the day when they will be called back to action."

"Are Link and Zelda married?" Chris asked, pointing at the couple on the picture. "I mean, they look so happy together."

The woman shook her head. "No, I'm afraid not. I don't know all the details, but Zelda got pregnant, and from there their relationship slowly came to an end. She's married to Roland, and they had a daughter together, but I have my doubts about that fact since the girl looks nothing like the man."

"I see. Is Link around? Could I meet him?"

Throwing back her head, the woman laughed. "Link disappeared quite awhile ago. I don't think I've seen him in nearly ten years."

At that moment, a man entered the room and strode over to the two. "Ah, I see you're awake, Chris. Take a seat, you'll want to be when I tell you why you are here."

"Roland, I don't think this one is as dazed as the other," the woman was saying. "Just look at him. He's not walking around saying that he's in a dream."

Roland shooed the woman away and held out his hand to Chris. "My name is Roland. It's nice to meet you. This woman is Lady Aurora, and she is our healer here at the castle."

Chris surprised the man by bowing. "The pleasure is all mine, your majesty."

"Told him I was king, did you?" He looked at Aurora with slight displeasure. "I was hoping he and I could talk as equals and have rank put behind us." Crossing his arms, he started to get in an argument with Aurora, and neither side was willing to give ground.

"Don't worry, sir. I can talk to you as an equal if you want." Chris sat down on the bed he had awoken in and waited patiently for the king to get situated.

Roland sat and told Chris everything he had told Ciel, astounded by the lack of emotion coming from the boy. "Your coming is a herald to my people. They will feel a sense of hope now that the prophecy has been fulfilled." He wanted to end on a good note just incase Chris was holding his emotions back.

"That's cool." Both Lady Aurora and Roland stared at him, not knowing what to say. When neither could form words, Chris decided to continue. "I always kind of wanted to come here. This is almost a dream come true, but to be honest, I don't really know how to respond to all of this. I don't know why Ciel burst into tears, but I'm not going to. It's probably because of the fact that we can't go back home, which I'll admit is saddening. I'll really miss my mom, but there's no helping it I guess."

"That's very wise, young Chris," Roland said with a nod. "Well, I'll allow you to ponder what you want to do while I return to see how your sister is doing."

Lady Aurora gave him a sweet smile and asked, "Are you hungry? I can bring you some food if you'd like."

Chris declined the offer saying that he would rather walk to wherever there was food to be eaten since it would stretch out his legs. Together they walked down to the kitchens and Chris thoroughly enjoyed getting a good look at the castle.

"How is she, Terence?" Roland asked as he rounded a corner. The man was sitting on the floor outside the door, the front of his tunic soaked. "What happened to you?"

Terence smiled timidly and chuckled. "Well, I tried to comfort her by saying that she could always start anew and become successful here, but she didn't take it the way I had hoped and she threw a cup of water in my face."

Roland frowned. "That was uncalled for."

"It's quite alright. I understand that she is very distraught, and I hold nothing against her." He stood up and pressed his ear to the door. "It would seem that her crying has ceased, but if we go in there we must proceed cautiously. She has in her possession great knowledge of self defense and that could prove quite painful if we are not careful."

Roland ignored the statement and strode into the room, hoping that his authority as king would prevent the girl from getting violent with him. "Ciel? How are you feeling?"

Ciel was hugging her knees, still seated on the same couch. She had made a mess of his office much to his dismay. The bookshelves on the walls were empty of their contents, a cushion had been torn apart, and a pictograph frame had been smashed, but this one thing she seemed to regret, because she was staring at it with a hopeless look. It looked like she had tried to repair it, but too many pieces had been broken and it just lay on his table with the pictograph facing her.

He walked over and took a seat next to her, wondering which pictograph she had used to vent her anger on. It was one of Zelda, Zeke, Faye, and himself when they had gone to a vacation spot a few years before. He liked the picture because it had at least half of the family smiling, but Zeke had been sulking that day and was unwilling to smile for the pictograph.

"I tried to fix it, but I couldn't find any glue or any other adhesive to put it back together," Ciel said quietly, her voice still under the affects of her loss of control.

Roland took the pictograph off the table and smiled. "Isn't my daughter cute?" He pointed at the laughing Faye and shook his head, amused. "She's a little on the obnoxious side, but she's a good kid. A little more outgoing than her brother."

"Your son?"

"No, Zeke's not mine. He was born outside of wedlock, and it's for that reason that he's always so unhappy." Roland sighed. "His mother doesn't treat him very well, thus his sullen attitude in the pictograph. They had a row that day because Zeke wanted to return home, but Zelda very rarely gets a chance to leave the castle so she was not about to let him ruin her vacation. When he got home, Zeke locked his door and didn't come out for two weeks, and the only reason he did was because he couldn't go another day without food."

"I'm sorry," Ciel apologized, more about the room than anything.

Roland gave her a pat on the back and tried to give her a warm smile. "Would you like to meet my daughter?"

"Actually, I think I should go to Chris to see how he's doing."

"Chris is fine. I spoke with him after I left here, and he's doing quite well."

Terence, who had been standing by the door, approached the two and gave a quick bow. "Should I find the little princess?"

Roland chuckled. "I don't think finding her is going to be the problem. I know exactly where she is. It's getting her to change clothes that's going to be an issue."

Both men laughed, obviously enjoying a personal joke among them. Ciel started to feel better knowing that there were people who cared that she was distressed. However, she was far from being fine. As they were about to leave, the white haired man approached the king saying that he had been sought after by the "rancher girl" and was told that she and her father would very much like to return to the land they had occupied before the flood.

Ciel's face turned red and she jumped at Calintz with a snarl. "YOU! YOU ARE THE REASON THAT I'M STUCK HERE IN THIS WORLD!" The force of her collision with him knocked him down to his back, and Ciel took the opportunity to pummel as much of him as she could.

Roland and Terence were too shocked to rush to the knight's aid, appalled by the girl's actions. Calintz himself seemed to be having trouble, unable to predict where Ciel was going to strike him next.

"'TO REACH THE LAND OF LEGEND, YOU MUST USE THE WIND OF THE GODDESS' YOU SAID! ALL IT DID WAS RUIN OUR TV AND TAKE ME AWAY FROM MY HOME!"

Finally tossing aside their shock, Terence and Roland jumped forward and pulled Ciel off of Calintz, her legs kicking out viciously, still trying to maim the man. "Ciel control yourself! Calintz is not the reason you are here!"

Holding his head, Calintz sat up and groaned. "I take it this is one of the two from the prophecy?"

"Yes, and as you can see she's a little distraught," Terence said, struggling to hold Ciel. "Are you alright, Calintz?"

The man nodded and stood to his feet. "It'll take more than that to hurt me, Terence. However, I can't have her attacking me every time she sees me, so perhaps I should take her with me and do some explaining while you go take care of that redhead for me."

Roland and Terence exchanged worried looks. "I don't know, Calintz," Roland said. "Are you sure you can handle her?"

"As long as she doesn't gouge my eyes out, I'll be fine, but I would rather make sure she agrees to be cooperative before you let her go." He stood just out of range of her legs and looked directly into her eyes. "What say you, girl? Will you behave while I explain to you why you are here?"

Ciel thought about saying no, but she wanted to know how this man came to be in the videogame that led her to Hyrule. "I'll be good," she mumbled so quietly that they made her repeat herself.

Reluctantly, Terence and Roland let go of her arms and waited, ready to grab her again incase she decided to go back on her word. When she did nothing but glared at Calintz, they started to relax a little bit. Roland placed a hand on Ciel's shoulder and bent down so he could whisper into her ear. "Be respectful, or he may punish you in whatever way he sees fit. While he's a good soul, he has little patience and I'd rather not hear that he hurt you."

Calintz stared right back at the girl, his grey eyes as sharp as the blade at his side. "Follow me, girl." He started to walk down the hall in quick strides, making Ciel jog to keep up with him. Roland had spoken truthfully, for his patience was already gone, but he felt obligated to dismiss the girl's actions on account of his part in bringing her to Hyrule. When they had gone quite a distance from the other two men, Calintz spoke again. "If you are going to assault me, do it verbally, and do it quickly. I don't want to you screaming at me while I'm trying to explain things to you." He stopped and turned to look at her.

Ciel took a deep breath braced herself, feeling her rage surface again. Something told her that nothing she could possibly say would hurt the man, so she felt no qualms about using the most colorful words she could think of. "I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY! BECAUSE OF YOU I'M STUCK IN THIS WORLD WITH NO WAY OF RETURING HOME! I PLACE A CURSE ON YOUR NAME AND WISH UPON YOU THE MOST HORRIBLE DEATH IMAGINABLE!" As she continued, she became further enraged as Calintz started to smile wickedly, mocking her. "FURTHER MORE, YOU'RE AN UGLY BASTARD!!"

The smile was gone. Ciel covered her mouth, appalled that she dared swear at the man, and started to mentally berate herself for her crudeness. Calintz reached for his hip, and Ciel recoiled, afraid that she had found something that had hurt him and that he was about to punish her. When nothing struck her, she dared open her eyes to see Calintz with his arms crossed. "You done?" His voice was edgy, and his dark eyebrows were forming a solid V.

Ciel looked away and nodded. "I'm sorry I swore at you."

This came as a surprise to the man, for the V disappeared. "I suppose I deserved it, and I can't really fault you for calling me what I am." He continued walking, his stride slower and more graceful than before. Ciel rushed to match step with him and waited patiently for him to speak. "I was born to a girl who was much too young to have a child, and in her desperation she hid the pregnancy. When I was born she attempted to leave me in the forest surrounding my home, but I was found by an elderly man from my village and it was he who raised me. It wasn't until I had turned twenty that my mother sought me out to tell me what happened and asked me if I would forgive her."

"Did you?" Ciel asked, afraid that the response he was about to give her would be a gruesome tale of how he slaughtered her for her treachery.

"Of course I did. I'm not heartless, you know," he responded, sounding affronted. "Even though she left me for dead, she's still my mother. She told me that everyday she would set down whatever it was she was doing to watch me for a little bit to see that I was being raised properly." He paused before saying, "Because of my origins, I have been able to connect with the prince on occasion for he is like me, with the exception that he wasn't left for dead."

Ciel had no words to say. She kept berating herself for the way she had treated this man just because she saw someone who resembled him in a videogame right before she found herself in Hyrule.

"It is not a coincidence that you recognized me, Ciel." Calintz made no effort to look at her, but he could still feel that she was staring at him without end. "It was I who brought you here, but the fault is not mine.

"I am from the lost village of Zephyr. It was there that the prophecy was made, and it was there that I played my part in bringing you and your brother here. You see, in order for the prophecy to come true, it was necessary to influence certain events. We cast a spell so that a message would reach you after the flood waters had disappeared from the land. I had been chosen to relay that message, and just like you said, I spoke the words "To reach the land of legend, you must use the Wind of the Goddess". It was an imprecise spell, due to the fact that we had no idea when the flood waters would recede and it risked bringing you here prematurely, but it was necessary so it was a risk we were willing to take."

"Why me?"

Calintz shrugged, saying, "I do not have the answer to that question. Your path will be shown to you when you are ready."

"Well that's a crappy answer," Ciel mumbled. She stopped walking as they were about to leave the castle, eyeing the ground nervously.

"What is wrong?" Calintz asked.

"I don't have any shoes, and the ground looks like it's full of rocks."

Without asking if it was okay, Calintz picked her up in his arms and carried her. "Stupid girl. Why didn't you ask Terence if you could borrow a pair of boots?"

Ciel glowered at him. "I wasn't thinking about it."

"A great help to Hyrule you're going to be." They stared at each other with contempt, but a whoop from someone down the dirt road got their attention.

The person who was approaching them was dressed in a similar fashion to both Calintz and Terence, and he appeared to be well acquainted with the man. "So, you finally found yourself a woman, eh Calintz?"

"Shut up, Reeve. She doesn't have any boots and you know as well as anyone that this road will rip up the bottom of your feet if you go through it bare foot." Calintz kicked at the man as he attempted to walk with him. "The day I take a woman is the same day I put down my sword."

Reeve rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, Calintz." He made no attempt to return to his original path, and from what Ciel could see, this bothered Calintz. "Anyway, I was just on my way back from the Archives, and I saw Raikkus heading up that way."

"So? What does that have to do with me?"

"Nothing, but you know as well as I that Kenji, the archivist boy, hates Raikkus with a passion. I'm just warning you that there might be trouble."

"I'll keep my eyes open," Calintz assured Reeve, wondering why he was neglecting his duties by informing someone else of this when he was perfectly capable of doing it himself. "Is there any other reason why you are walking along side me, or can you leave now?"

Reeve turned his attention to Ciel, frowning. "When you and this guy settle down for the night, make sure you help him release some of that energy of his. Maybe he'll be more pleasant if he gets a little something."

Both Ciel and Calintz kicked him, Calintz catching him in the knee, and Ciel hitting him in the face. Reeve dropped like a sack of tubers. "Nice shot," Calintz said as he quickened his pace to be rid of the man.

"He's vulgar and can't take a hint. He deserved it."

Calintz laughed. "He wasn't always like that. Back when the Crimson Tears were first formed, he was very quiet. Even Terence had more backbone then Reeve, and that was saying a lot since Terence was a wimp to say the least. It wasn't until after he had spent a lot of time around the other knights that Reeve began to speak more freely, although Roland is still the worst when it comes to that." Ciel looked around and asked him where he was taking her. "I'm taking you to speak to someone who will tell us where you should go while you're waiting to play your part in the future."

The road they were traveling opened up into an outdoor market that bustled with people. Fruit stalls and other such goods were being sold at bargain prices, and even below a bargain for those that could haggle well. Calintz ignored all the people and walked into a dark alleyway where he made a couple turns and approached a dead end.

"Uh, this looks like a deserted alley," Ciel said, looking at Calintz.

"Is it?" a voice said from behind them. A man in a cloak dropped in front of them, startling Ciel. He was completely hidden underneath the hooded cloak, and Ciel wondered who could possibly be underneath it. "Thank you for coming, Calintz. This must be the girl from the prophecy."

"Hai, sir," Calintz said, setting Ciel down and saluting. "Just as you requested."

The cloaked man reached out and, with gloved hands, gently gripped Ciel's chin, turning her head this way and that. "She's pretty. How old are you, girl?"

"I'm…eighteen."

"Young too. Very well. Send her with Malon and Talon when they return to their ranch. Enlist the help of Kenji as well. He'll be good at informing her of our politics and other things she'll need to know about Hyrule."

"Sir, Kenji works for the Archives, and you know as well as I that they do not allow their employees to take time off without good reason."

The man's hood turned to the direction where Ciel had seen a large building on their way there, and he said, "Kenji has a temper. He'll be speaking with Idarolan soon. In the mean time, make sure this girl gets a good meal inside of her and find a room for her to sleep in for the night." The cloaked man turned, but Ciel cried for him to wait.

"What about my brother, Chris?" she asked. For the longest time she thought that the man was going to leave without answering, but he eventually made use of his voice again.

"The same will go for him." He then disappeared in a flurry of leaves and wind, leaving no trace behind.

"Who was that?" Ciel asked, confused by how he was able to disappear like that.

"He'll be revealed to you in time, Ciel."


	11. Chapter 11: Journeyman of the Archives

Chapter 11: Journeyman Of The Archives

Many apprentices cowered in fear as the man strode up to the front desk. His name was Raikkus, and whenever he stepped into the Archives it meant trouble for all of them. He was the son of Ganondorf, and had inherited his father's tall and muscular traits, but had been spared the rugged looks of the man's face. His facial features were soft, reflecting that of his mother, and made him appear to be a kind and handsome person. However this was not true of the man, for many had been relieved of their positions in the Archives, among other places, because they had not performed to his expectations.

However, this day was one that the apprentices knew they would never forget, for a certain young Journeyman was working at the front desk on this day. If there was anything these two shared in common, it was their brutal and irrational dislike for each other. The Journeyman had his head bent down, his glasses pressed down so they would remain on his nose while he read a tome he had pulled out earlier that day. His bangs, being parted in the middle, fell around his face like a frame, while the rest of his hair was pulled back in a ponytail that fell to his shoulder blades.

Everyone watching the scene held their breath as Raikkus approached the front desk. He scowled when the Journeyman failed to notice him. Clearing his throat, he said, "Excuse me, Journeyman. If you are done reading, I would advise that you do your job."

The Journeyman held up a finger and said, "Just a second." He slowly closed the tome, still trying to read the page he was on, and finally acknowledged the man standing before him. He faked a grimace and, even though he knew who it was from the beginning, said, "Oh, it's you."

Raikkus ignored the comment and brandished a piece of paper. "I have a list of articles I would like to peruse. If you would be so…_kind_ as to fetch them for me I would most appreciate it." The strain in his voice was clear to everyone within earshot. While he harbored bitter feelings for the Journeyman, his father had taught him to be respectful and, as an ambassador of the Gerudo people, was expected to be a good example in public. He handed the youth his list and waited patiently, though anyone on his side of the desk could see that he was tapping his foot rather impatiently.

The Journeyman read through the list and frowned. On the list, though at a glance was completely harmless, there were a few documents that depicted, in detail, past attempts to take over Hyrule, starting with Ardor's first attempt hundreds of years in the past and ending with the most recent one that left the land of Hyrule flooded. Unlike Raikkus, the Journeyman had no reservations being rude in public. "My apologies, _Lord_ Raikkus, but it would appear that I cannot bring to you the requested scrolls."

Raikkus was unable to prevent his eye from twitching, giving the Journeyman slight satisfaction at getting under his skin. "I see, and for what reason is this?"

The Journeyman smiled, revealing his teeth. "Because I don't like you."

Raikkus's hand started to reach for his belt knife, but someone was shouting from behind the desk and he knew there would be no need for violence on this day.

"Kenji!"

The Journeyman took a deep breath and turned around to face the Master Archivist that was in charge for the day. "Yes, Master Kell?" The man was limping over to them at a brisk pace, the sound of his cane making contact with the stone floor reverberating like a cold heartbeat.

When Master Kell stopped next to Kenji, he held out his hand for the list, and Kenji, reluctantly, handed it to him. He looked it over and gave it back to his Journeyman. "Go get them." He glared at him coldly as he stood up from his chair and disappeared into the rows of shelves. "My apologies, Lord Raikkus. Had I known you were coming to visit, I would have personally welcomed you here upon your arrival."

"There's no need to apologize, Master Kell," Raikkus said, smiling because he was getting his way. "We can't expect everyone in the world to be respectful like yourself."

Kenji grabbed a ladder and set it against a high shelf where all the "Attempts-to-rule-Hyrule" scrolls were and quietly cursed the Master Archivist for showing up. "I was just about to get him to draw his weapon which would have given me every right to have him arrested and he just comes along and butts in like he always does." He slid down the ladder and turned to go to another shelf, but someone appeared out of nowhere and startled him, causing him to drop the scrolls. Clutching his chest, he took a few steadying breaths before patting the girl on the head. "Ami, you know I hate it when you do that."

The short girl laughed and bent down to help him pick up the scrolls. "But it's fun. Besides, I wouldn't be able to find you if you would learn to keep your thoughts in your head instead of flowing from your mouth." She felt around to see if any of the scrolls had fallen near her, but she found none.

Kenji pushed her over and picked up the three scrolls he had taken from the shelf. "For a blind girl, you sure are a pain, you know that?"

She got to her feet and kicked her foot out, but missed Kenji entirely. He forced the scrolls into her arms, and she wrinkled her nose out of distaste. "Why do you always make _me_ carry the smelly scrolls? There are plenty of other apprentices walking around here, like Frïdric and Eve who are kissing just on the other side of this shelf. Hey you two! Either be discreet or go out in the street and annoy someone else with your disgusting noises!" There was a yelp from the other side of the shelf and Kenji caught sight of a boy and girl walking towards the very back of the Archives at a brisk pace.

"I make _you_ carry the smelly scrolls because no one else pops out of nowhere to scare me. You bring it upon yourself." He kept talking so she could follow him around the many shelves as he got the other scrolls that were on the list. "Tell me again how a blind girl managed to become a Journeywoman in the Archives."

Ami rolled her head, since she never knew if rolling her eyes was as effective as she wanted it to be. "You know better than anyone that Brekke needs me here."

"That doesn't answer my question," Kenji said, mocking her. "I mean, you're blind, so you obviously can't read or write, which are the two biggest jobs an archivist has."

"I wouldn't expect an unintelligent individual like you to understand the complexities of our hall," Ami said, taunting him. "Maybe if you had spent as much time here as I have you would know why I got promoted to Journeywoman."

Kenji laughed and ruffled her hair. "Still have your sly tongue, I see. We'll have to cut that out someday."

"And while we're at it, we can gouge out my eyes," she said with an exaggerated tone. "It's perfectly okay, it's not like I use them or anything."

They both laughed as Kenji returned to the front desk with her behind him, the stack of scrolls now higher than her head. As they approached the desk, Kenji saw Raikkus jump and point at the pile of scrolls.

"How are you doing that?" he asked, afraid that the Journeyman could use magic.

Kenji frowned and looked at the pile. "Simple, I enlist a short blind girl to carry the scrolls so that I don't get my sleeves dusty."

Raikkus regained his composure and thanked him for the scrolls. "Have a pleasant afternoon, gentlemen." He slipped the scrolls into a bag that he slung over his shoulder and left the Archives. As soon as he was out the door, Kenji started to laugh.

"What do you find so amusing?" Master Kell said, his face serious.

"He thought the scrolls were just floating there, that's what." Kenji quit laughing, knowing that the sound irritated the Master Archivist.

Master Kell stared at him and said, "Master Idarolan will be hearing of today's encounter." With that, he turned around and left Kenji at the front desk.

* * *

Zeke yawned, opening his mouth wide to get enough air in his lungs. The days were becoming increasingly longer as they traveled along the outer edge of the forest, slowly making their way to the castle. "How much farther do we have to go?"

Maiya was slouching in her saddle, just as tired as the prince. She whipped out the map and frowned. "According to the map, we have too far to go."

"Wonderful." Zeke started to stretch, but ceased after he almost fell off of his horse. "Well, you've got to admit this is better than sitting around doing nothing."

Maiya scoffed. "Yeah, this is _much_ better than sitting at the front desk of the Archives day in and day out." Glancing at the map again she sighed and groaned. "I think I would trade this in to be a Harper again."

"What is a Harper?" Sakura asked, floating around Maiya's head.

The girl folded the map and placed it in her saddlebags. "Harper is the title we give someone who works with cataloguing our history. The goal of a Harper is to preserve our history so that no one will forget significant events." She yawned, and then glared at Zeke. "Thanks a lot, I really needed to catch your stupid yawns."

"Wow, that seems very interesting," Sakura exclaimed.

"Not really," Maiya said, continuing. "There are two types of Harpers, and only one of them gets to call themselves an actual Harper. The first is the musician type who travels to places to teach people. It's rather effective really, since a song is easier to memorize than plain reading. The other type is an Archivist, who writes down history as it happens. I would rather have been a musician than a writer."

"Why were you an archivist?"

"Because she can't carry a tune to save her life," Zeke said with a grin.

Maiya nodded, unashamed of the fact. "It's the truth. I've tried singing, I've tried playing an instrument, and I failed at both. The Master Harper, Petiron, told me that I was the least musically gifted person he had ever met, but he helped me get into the Archives so I didn't hold it against him."

"I see," Sakura murmured, taking a seat on Maiya's head. "I take it you found the work unsatisfying."

"It wasn't that. It was just very dull work. None of the Master Archivists have a sense of humor, so that really deadened everything. The only entertainment I had came in the form of Journeyman Kenji who taught me how to defend myself."

"You can stop there, Maiya," Zeke said stiffly.

"Why?" Sakura asked.

Maiya smirked and continued just to spite Zeke. "He's just being a baby. I got out of the Archives thanks to good luck. Zeke had come into the Archives about two years ago and he said he was on an errand for his mother. She told him to get a scroll on their family tree so she could teach it to his sister, but he was being really rude about it."

"All I did was asked if I could get the scroll on my family tree," he mumbled.

"I was busy filling out a form, and Zeke here slammed his hand down on top of it to get my attention, spilling ink all over the document. I'll admit that I might have overreacted, but I was almost done with the document and he ruined it, so I got a little angry and I may have made Zeke cry."

"I didn't cry!"

"Yes you did," Maiya said, glaring at him for interrupting the story. "Anyway, Sir Terence was in the Archives that day and when he saw the way I took down Zeke he asked me if I wanted to join the military academy. Feeling that it would give me a fresh new start on my life, I took the offer and left the archives."

Sakura made a thoughtful sound before asking, "You really made Zeke cry?"

"No!"

"Yes, I did."

"Can you do it again?"

Zeke glowered at the fairy, but Maiya's answer comforted him. "I don't know, Sakura. Zeke has become a really good swordsman, and I don't know if I could now."

Sakura was disappointed to hear this. "I would have liked to see that." She told them that she needed to stretch her wings and flew off ahead of them, performing aerial acrobatics as she did.

"Thanks for the compliment," Zeke said, giving Maiya a smile.

Maiya laughed. "I only said that so Sakura would drop the subject. If I wanted to, I could make you cry like a little girl."

* * *

Kenji was asleep when his friend Brekke entered his room to relay a message. She had knocked on the door, but no sound came from the other side so she opened the door to see if he was even in his room. There, lying on his bed with his mouth open was Kenji, drooling onto his pillow quite profusely. "Wake up, man, before you flood Hyrule again," she laughed, covering her mouth to mute her laughter.

Kenji woke up with a start, wiping the drool off the side of his face and looking at Brekke. The blanket he had been using slid to the floor and revealed that he had good muscle build that made Brekke's eyes sparkle in awe. "How does an archivist come to have such a desirable body? Flex for me."

Kenji grabbed a shirt and yawned, pulling it over his head. "Maybe later, Brekke." Wiping the crust from his eyes, he looked out the window and saw that it was still dark outside. "What brings you here at this hour?"

Brekke walked over and sat on his bed, crossing her legs. "Idarolan wants to see you. I think Master Kell might have told him about what happened today with Lord Raikkus."

"This is the last thing I need," he groaned. Getting out of bed, Kenji stood by his window and looked out at the surrounding area. "Do you know why he wants to talk to me?"

"No I don't, which is why I'm worried." She stood up and went over to him, wrapping her arms around him. "You're my best friend, Kenji. I don't know how I'll survive if you're kicked out of the Archives."

He returned the embrace, saying, "I'm sure you'll be alright if I am. We both know it's coming anyway, and it would be better for it to happen sooner than later so that I can at least start a new career while I'm still young." Looking back out the window, he noticed some dark clouds on the horizon. "It's going to rain," he said, breaking from the embrace so he could tie his hair in the usual ponytail. "It looks like it could be one bad storm."

Brekke fixed his ponytail so that it was no longer at a weird angle and pushed him towards the door. "You better get going or Idarolan will be mad that you took so long."

Kenji jerked to the side and popped his back, wincing as he did. "I'll let you know the verdict when I get back." He closed the door behind him, knowing that no one would dare enter his room without his permission to find a girl there when she should be in her own room.

The halls were relatively empty at this time of day, save for the occasional apprentice running his master's errands. Idarolan's office was in another building, and the dormitories were the furthest away from it. Kenji had no idea why the layout was this way, but he found it most inconvenient. The other Archive buildings were behind the one where people could come to request scrolls, giving the archivists there own area to inhabit that was close to where they worked.

As Kenji made his way through the dormitories, he scared a few of the newer apprentices that were running around outside of their rooms. While he had the authority to punish them for being outside of their rooms for no good reason, he ignored them and continued on his way. His business was more important than they were.

Outside, the only people walking around were the adults who had a later curfew that none abided by. Kenji held up his Journeyman's knot in front of him as he walked towards Idarolan's quarters so that none of the adults would think to stop him and ask him why he was out of bed.

He passed a handful of the Master Archivists that were of lower rank than Idarolan, a few of which just looked at him and nodded there acceptance that he was out of bed. One archivist he passed looked at him with distaste, but said nothing to him. It was clear that the man disapproved of his choice of clothes, but Kenji cared no more about his clothes than he did about the kids in the dormitories. The only thing wrong with his appearance was that his shirt was wrinkled and he was padding through the courtyard bare foot.

He stopped before the master's door and knocked. A middle-aged woman opened the door and smiled. "Hello, Kenji. How are you this evening?"

He tried to return the smile, but failed as apprehension took a hold of his insides. "I wish I could say that I am well, however being summoned to the Master Archivist's quarters at this time of night is rather disconcerting, madam."

She placed her hands on her hips and frowned. "Have you been causing trouble in the Archives?"

"Who is it, Menolly dear?"

"It's Journeyman Kenji, Idarolan."

There was a bang as a door was thrown open and a man with graying hair came running to the front door. "Ah, Kenji, thank you for coming so promptly," he said, wincing as his wife hit him for his disrespectful entrance. "Menolly, I'm the Master Archivist. People excuse my rude behavior all the time." He turned his gaze to Kenji and he became forlorn. "Unfortunately, I can't say the same about young Kenji here." He motioned for Kenji to follow him and they went to his office, a large room filled with the funny gadgets Idarolan found such interest in. "Such troubling news I've received, Kenji." He took a seat behind his desk and placed his hands upon the polished wood.

"Sir, I can explain," Kenji started, but Idarolan cut him off.

"There's no need, Kenji. I know that you dislike Raikkus, and I know that he dislikes you. It's a mutual hatred that we can't get passed, and I don't fault you for it. Raikkus is far from the easiest person to get along with, however while others fear him, you are the only one that will stand up to him. Noble, very noble, but the other masters think it is a bad example to the apprentices and they have asked me to take action, to right this situation."

Kenji felt his heart sink, and his face portrayed his fear. "Please sir, don't kick me out of the Archives. This place is my home, and my only friends are here. I'll behave if you'll just give me one more chance."

Idarolan chuckled. "Ah, so dramatic, yes very dramatic, Kenji, but there's no need to beg and plead." He reached into a drawer in his desk and retrieved a piece of parchment that he placed in front of Kenji. "Now, the other masters want me to throw you out, but I can't in good conscience do that. In that case, the only option is to put you on a strict schedule with a plethora of restrictions, ration cuts, and other such nonsense that would kill a man without a good constitution. However, I have found a solution that I think we both will approve of."

Kenji looked at the parchment and read through it. It was a letter from Master Harper Petiron that requested help from the Archives. He looked up at Idarolan who was smiling. "The Harper Hall?"

"Yes, Kenji, the Harper Hall," he said with a nod. "You see, with so many of the masters wanting your resignation, I am forced into a position where going against them is out of the question. It is damaging to my status to disagree with them, and it creates ill feelings among the hall. While I don't want to remove you from the premises, I have no choice. However, I like you, Kenji. I will not kick you out of my hall until I'm sure you have a place to go. I offer to you the Harper Hall. I will talk to Petiron to have everything arranged, a room, a station of work, and your status as Journeyman."

Kenji was shocked to hear this turn of events. While he was being evicted from the hall, he was being given the chance to be a part of the most respected hall in Hyrule. "How will I maintain my Journeyman status?"

Idarolan waved this aside like it was no big problem. "All it takes is to show you know certain ballads and such. I've heard you sing before and I have to admit that I've often wondered how you ended up in my hall opposed to Petiron's."

The Journeyman stared at the piece of parchment for a long moment before saying, "Considering the circumstances, I think it would be in my best interests to take this offer. But I would like to make one suggestion, Master Idarolan."

Normally Kenji was rather informal during meetings such as this, so the use of the title made Idarolan smile. "Anything you need, Kenji."

"Well? What did he say?" Brekke asked as soon as Kenji returned.

He took a deep breath and shook his head, saying, "I've been evicted, Brekke." The girl burst into tears and embraced Kenji tightly, telling him everything would be all right and that she would come visit him no matter where he ended up. He started to laugh, catching her by surprise. "Master Idarolan is pulling some strings to get me in the Harper Hall."

Brekke stared at him with her mouth hanging open, her tears ending abruptly. "What?"

"Master Harper Petiron needs someone to go with the prince so that his quest can be put in a ballad. No one from his hall volunteered, so he looked to ours for help. Idarolan said that he had no choice but to send me away, but he got me a new job," he explained, laughing happily.

Brekke asked him for all the details, positive that he was making everything up and that he was being sent away from her. It surprised her that Idarolan had taken such a liking to Kenji that he was willing to use his power as Master Archivist to place him in a better job. "That's great, Kenji, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm going to miss you while you're away. You know how I am when you go off to do things. I get clumsy and the masters yell at me."

"Ready for the best part?" he asked, taking her hand in his.

"What best part?"

Kenji took a piece of parchment out of his shirt and handed it to her. "This is a note from Idarolan saying that you're coming to the Harper Hall with me. I asked him to write it in a note so you would not doubt my words." The look of shock on her face was there for only moment for tears began to run down her face again. It had been her dream since she was a little girl to be in the Harper Hall, and he had just delivered it for her. "This is my gift to you for being such a good friend to me. I don't know when I'll return from my trip, and I knew you'd be furious with me for leaving you, so I did this for you so you would find it in your heart to forgive me."

Brekke sobbed, choking on her own bliss. "Kenji, I don't know what to say."

"Don't say anything yet, Brekke," he said, standing and walking over to his dresser where he pulled out the top drawer and took something out of it. "I've been trying to think of the perfect moment to do this," he said as he took a knee.

"Kenji, no. Don't do that to me," she pleaded, overwhelmed by everything that was happening already. "Quit kidding around, I'm already crying hard enough."

He took her hand and gently squeezed it, smiling blissfully. "I'm not kidding, Brekke. When I get back from this upcoming trip," he started, holding up a small box that he opened to reveal a gleaming diamond ring. "Will you marry me?"

As Kenji approached Master Idarolan the next morning, the older man gave him a quizzical stare. "Did you hear someone scream last night?"

"You heard that, huh?" Kenji smiled happily, his bliss overflowing.

Idarolan scoffed and rolled his eyes. "I should have known you would be behind it. And just so you know, everyone heard it. I had three masters come to me and ask me if someone was being attacked. I thought that it might have been you informing Brekke that you had got her into the Harper Hall so I refrained from calling for a soldier."

Kenji laughed, startling the same group of apprentices he had seen the night before on his way to the master's quarters. "That wasn't enough to get that scream, sir," he said, quite sure of himself. "The only reaction that got was tears of joy."

At that moment, Brekke came running around a corner and took her place next to Kenji. She bowed to Idarolan, saying, "Good morning, Master Idarolan."

The archivist noticed a glint of light on her finger and understanding donned on him, but Kenji was too excited to just allow the man his thoughts. Wrapping an arm around Brekke's waist he said, "Meet my fiancé."

Idarolan gave a deep bow. "I am happy for you both. Now, if you'll accompany me, we have a meeting with King Roland and Master Harper Petiron."

"The king will be there?" Brekke asked, astonished.

"Yes, yes. He wants to speak to Kenji about something, but I can assure you that it's nothing bad. Petiron is the second happiest man alive next to Kenji. He was hugging me and thanking me for giving him two new Harpers, one of which has a talent for coming up with memorable verses."

Brekke looked from Idarolan to Kenji, who said, "I gave him a sample of the tunes you had written to show Petiron."

Idarolan had to give the two a push to get them walking for he was growing impatient with waiting around. "Come now, quickly, quickly. We must make haste or we'll be late." He led them down the cobblestone walkway that led down from the Archives to the square at a quick pace, continuing to say how late they were going to be and that displeasing the king could never be forgiven.

Rushing them into a milk bar, he hailed two men sitting in a corner with a young girl and boy around the same ages as Kenji and Brekke. "Ah, Master Petiron, your majesty." He forced the couple into seats at the table before taking his own next to the Master Harper.

Roland looked exhausted, and he turned to Master Idarolan with a mournful look on his face. "Why did you want to have this meeting so early? I don't normally wake up until the midday meal."

"My apologies, your highness," Idarolan said with a bow.

"No matter," Roland said after stifling a yawn with his hand. "It's been awhile, Kenji."

"Yes, it has indeed sir."

"Because I'm tired and I want to be rid of all of you soon, I'm going to get right to the point. Before you go off to catch up with Zeke, I want you to help Talon move his cattle to the ranch down in Hyrule Field."

Kenji bowed. "It would be my pleasure, sir."

"And you'll be escorting this girl and her brother, Ciel and Chris. They will be helping Malon run the ranch until she can get more help. Talon is becoming quite old and he's been needing more rest than he has before, so it is important that these two get to the ranch in one piece."

"That doesn't sound too difficult."

"No, it doesn't and it's not. You leave immediately, so pack whatever you'll need and be off. Now I'm tired and cranky, so I'm going to return home and I'm going to go get some more sleep. Good day to you all."


	12. Chapter 12: A Rainy Day

Chapter 12: A Rainy Day

Ciel shouldered a small bag that was filled with clothes that Terence had put together for her. He had been very insistent that she take them with her, for if she was going to be a farm hand then she would need to have appropriate clothes to wear for all the activities she was going to take part in. Setting out from her room, she headed down the hall that led to the main foyer of the castle.

"Leaving so soon?"

Ciel turned around to see Calintz walk out from behind a suit of armor. "What were you hiding for?"

"I wasn't hiding. I was leaning up against the wall waiting for you. I only appeared to be hidden since you failed to notice me."

"Well sorry I didn't seek you out to say good bye," she said with a scowl. "What do you want anyway? Don't you have stuff to do with your knight buddies?"

He approached her and looked down at her feet. "Nice boots. Those should keep your feet well protected."

"They used to belong to one of Terence's students," she said, looking at them with scrutinizing eyes. "I figure they'll have to do until I can afford to buy a new pair." She looked up at the knight, trying to appear strong in his eyes, but his grey eyes were always so expressionless it was hard to tell what he was thinking.

"I came to wish you a safe trip," he said, crossing his arms and looking down at her. "I feel responsible for bringing you here, it's the least I could do."

Ciel smiled, wondering what other motives the man could have. "Well aren't you a sweetheart. Thank you, Sir Calintz. It is very appreciated," she said formally, giving him a short curtsy. "When do you think we'll get to see each other again?"

This question caught the knight off guard, but he answered confidently. "A knight will come around every other week or so to see how you and Chris are doing. It would not do to have the two of you unhappy. We of the Crimson Tears will make sure that you are well taken care of while you are under the employ of Malon."

"You sure that it's not just you who's going to be checking in on me?" Ciel asked, grinning playfully. She was having fun messing with the knight that she had come to respect in the day that she was in Hyrule and she was sad that they would have to part so soon after meeting. Calintz could not form an answer to her question, but Ciel gave him little time to do so. "Well, I better get going before someone gets impatient and comes after me."

"Of course." He gave her a stiff bow and turned to leave, but Ciel had called his name. "Yes?"

She gave him a hug saying, "Thanks for everything."

"But I haven't even done very much."

Ciel sighed. "You're so stupid." She bid him farewell and started down the hall again. Though she did not look back, she could feel his grey eyes watching her until she turned a corner and vanished from his field of vision.

"What took you so long?" Chris asked as Ciel finally appeared in the foyer. "We've been waiting."

Kenji was standing next to Chris, dwarfing him with his height. "We were not waiting for very long. Chris only just got here himself." The blue haired boy glared up at the blonde. "However we really must be going so we can get down from the mountain before the rain comes. Malon and a friend of hers managed to get their cattle to the bottom yesterday, but now that they have to travel through a wider area, they really need us to help herd the cattle so they don't go wandering off."

He led them to the stables where he put them on horses. "This is kind of cool, eh Chris?" Ciel said, petting her horse on the neck. Her brother was looking down from his saddle at the ground.

"Kind of high, don't you think?"

"You'll get over it."

Chris turned his attention to his horse. "Okay. My name is Chris, and I shall call you horse. You will take care of me and I will do my best to take care of you. Got it?" The horse snorted, turning its head to look at the rider on its back. Without waiting for any command, it started walking out of the stables. "Cool, it's an automatic."

Ciel gigged her horse into a trot and followed Kenji and Chris to the edge of the town where Malon and her father were waiting for them. "So this is the help I'm to receive, eh?" She looked at Kenji and smirked. "Well, _you_ I think will be of some use, but these other two look a little green to me."

Chris sat up straight in his saddle, trying to look more impressive than he really was. "I may be short, but I adamantly believe in the saying that big things come in small packages."

Malon laughed at the joke and mounted her own horse. "Well, you'll have plenty of time to prove it. Come quickly and we might be able to beat those dark clouds rolling in." She led the way down the mountain, warning everyone about treacherous terrain.

* * *

Zeke looked up at the sky as it started to rain, muttering a curse. "We should head for somewhere sheltered from the rain," he suggested, looking over at Maiya.

"What, don't like the rain?" she asked. She was standing in her saddle and had her arms outstretched. "Well be fine as long as we don't hear thunder, in which case we'll probably be safer taking refuge in the forest."

The prince scowled as a raindrop fell in his eye. "What are you going to tell me next, that we should spar in this weather to gain experience?"

"That's not a bad idea, Zeke. Let's do it!" She hopped off of her horse and drew her sword, waiting for him to do the same.

"I was kidding. We shouldn't waste any time getting to the castle."

"You afraid of me? Is that it?"

Zeke gave her a bland stare. "Did I say that?" He gestured towards the ground. "It's going to get muddy, and the only thing that'll do is get our clothes dirty."

"Quit acting like a girl and get down here." When he made no effort to dismount his horse, she took the initiative and, jumping up, tackled him off of his horse. Getting back on her feet she looked down at him. "Now get up and fight me."

Zeke groaned, wondering if it was possible that he had not broken any bones. Slowly rising to his feet, he checked to make sure he only had bruises before drawing his sword. "That could have killed me," he said angrily.

"Well it didn't, so you can't be mad at me." Zeke charged at Maiya, slashing at her torso, but his foot slipped on the wet grass and he fell onto his back. Maiya erupted into laughter, dropping her sword to clutch her sides. "I said fight me, not make me laugh to death."

Zeke returned to his feet and, while she was too busy laughing to notice him, rammed into Maiya, knocking her down and causing her to slide a few feet on the wet ground. This did not seem to affect her in the slightest for she curled into a ball and laughed even harder. The prince felt uncomfortable watching her roll around on the ground immersed in her mirth. "Maiya, it's not that funny."

Her laughter slowly waned until she was only afflicted by uncontrollable giggles, allowing her to stand up again. "I'm sorry. I didn't get much sleep last night and when I'm tired everything is funny." Taking a calming breath, she was resigned to allow a giddy grin to curl at the corners of her mouth. "Now how 'bout that spar?"

It turned out that fighting in the rain was the most futile activity they could have done. They were too busy slipping in the mud and falling to be able to strike each other. On several occasions, they would throw their swords on accident as they were falling and the other would have to dodge the on coming blade in order to avoid an injury. Not much time had passed when they finally decided to give up, both lying in the mud with their swords nowhere to be seen. "I think I saw your sword impale a tree," Zeke said, looking over to the trees and seeing Maiya's blade protruding from a tree trunk.

"And I think yours impaled me." Maiya was clutching her right arm where she was bleeding quite freely. She tried to stand to her feet, but her mud covered boots just slipped in the slick and fell back onto her rear.

"Actually, you cut yourself, Maiya," Sakura said, floating over to inspect the wound. "When you fell that last time, you slashed yourself when your sword came out of your hand."

"Well that's not very valiant," Maiya frowned. "I can always say that I got the scar while fighting with a bulbin though. I think that could work." She grimaced and bent her head down.

Zeke rushed to her side, a task none too easy with all the mud. He took a look at the wound and sighed. "We're going to have to get that bandaged right away or you'll faint from blood loss."

"Then by all means, do what you've got to do," Maiya said as she stared at the bloody hand that she was using to try and stifle the blood flow. "But first, let's get into the trees where we'll have some cover from this rain." She wrapped her uninjured arm around Zeke's neck and he helped her stand up. Telling him to bring the horses, she staggered into the forest looking for a dry spot.

Zeke went to take the horses by the reigns, but he almost doubled over in laughter when he saw Sakura trying to move them on her own. "Sakura, I seriously doubt that you'll be able to get them to move. They're heavier than you."

The fairy tugged on the reigns to no avail. "I am just trying to help. The longer you take getting into the forest the less Maiya's chances of staying conscious are."

Zeke took the reigns and placed his fairy on his shoulder. "I appreciate the help, but next time just flick me in the ear or something and tell me to get a move on." He rushed the horses into the forest where he tied them to a tree before tending to his traveling companion.

Maiya was leaning against a tree and appeared to be asleep, gripping her arm tightly. Her face had drained of color from loss of blood and exertion. Covered in mud and blades of grass, she looked quite pathetic. Opening just one eye, she murmured, "Well? Are you going to do something or are you going to let me die? I can't bandage this by myself."

Zeke took a medical kit from his saddlebags and sat down next to Maiya. Her sword had found the only weak spot in her long sleeved chain mail, slicing through it like it was paper. While this astonished him, he could not help but grimace when he saw just how bad the cut was.

Maiya saw the look on his face and smiled. "Please tell me that it's just a scratch."

"It's long and deep, but it didn't cut to the bone, for that you can be grateful. I see two links of your chain mail inside of the cut, and those will have to come out. I don't know if I should try stitching it back together or not. I was never very good at it."

"Then don't. Just wrap a bandage around it and we'll get help from someone else later." She pushed herself off of the tree and held up her arms. "Help me out of this horrid chain mail."

Zeke stared at her, his face tinting pink. "Why can't we just cut it off?"

"Because to do that you'll have to cut my tunic off, and this is my favorite tunic, so your options are limited." Zeke reluctantly helped her out of the tunic and chain mail, leaving the girl in nothing but a thin undershirt she wore to protect her skin from the mail. "When you're done, I would like to request a blanket for my privacy and so I don't freeze to death."

As Zeke cleaned the wound, he could see her shivering from the cold, and flinching from the pain. When he reached for the tweezers, he saw her recoil and he was overcome by pity. Removing his belt, he folded it to add to the thickness and held it out for Maiya. "Bite down on this so you don't bite off your tongue." He waited until he was sure that she had mentally prepared herself for what was to come, and then he separated the cut with his fingers and, as gently as he could, pulled out the broken metal circles that had found their way into the wound.

Maiya screamed against the leather she was biting, resisting the urge to push Zeke away so the pain would cease. The pain was too much for her to bear, and her vision went black.

Zeke quickly removed both links and applied a salve to numb the area before wrapping a bandage around her upper arm to still the bleeding. Doing as she requested, he returned to the horses and procured a blanket from his saddlebags that he wrapped around her to keep her warm while he went out to find wood and rocks for a fire. "Sakura, keep an eye on her."

"Why can you not?"

"Unless you want to go find firewood and rocks to put around the fire."

"I shall stay." The fairy took a seat in Maiya's lap so she could look up at the girl's face. "What should I tell her if she wakes up?"

Zeke shrugged and disappeared behind a tree, his voice the only indicator that he was still nearby. "Tell her to stay put and relax." He picked up a sizeable branch that was still pretty dry and dragged it back to their campsite. Taking his hatchet from his saddlebags, he hacked the branch into smaller pieces that he put in a pile next to him. When he was sure they had enough, he went back to searching for rocks to keep the fire from spreading any further than he wanted.

"You humans are a funny race," Sakura said as Zeke returned with an armful of rocks. "You seek warmth from something that most other creatures stay away from because it is dangerous."

"We're smarter than most creatures, Sakura." Zeke made a circle with the rocks he had collected and made a small pyramid out of small sticks and a few dried leaves he had picked up.

"Are you?"

He gave the fairy a long hard look before returning to building his fire. "I would like to think so. We are the most advanced race, aside from the Zora, Gorons, and Rito who are all human like in their own way. Wild beasts fear fire, while we see it as an object we can use to bring warmth and cook our food. We also recognize it as a living, breathing soul that can cause destruction if left unchecked." He took out his fire starter, a metal stick that would create sparks when one ran their knife down its side. It was a newer invention that someone had created, saying that it utilized something called magnesium. Zeke found it most useful, but hardly understood how it worked.

After he had set the sticks ablaze, he put larger sticks into it until he was able to place a large piece of wood to fuel the fire. "Like all creatures, humans are beasts, yet we have devoted our lives to bettering ourselves instead of being content to just survive. That is what makes us different." He looked towards the field and saw that the rain had picked up immensely, pouring down upon Hyrule. Feeling that even with the cover of trees that the rain could reach them, he took his tent and tied it to a tree so that it would protect Maiya and the fire from the rain.

"So you cower from the life giving water, and fuel the killing fire," Sakura said, a hint of amusement in her voice. "Very peculiar."

* * *

Ciel brushed her antennae aside again, becoming irritated with her hair. The rain was relentless, pouring down like liquid bullets and trying to pelt her to death. She was glad that she was far from the only person having problems. Kenji's bangs were falling into his eyes constantly, and as a result he had to undo his ponytail and tie it higher so that his bangs would reach. Malon had her hair tied back in pigtails since having it down was only bringing her grief.

They were making their way through Hyrule Field, or so she was told, and they were herding the cattle alongside the coast. Ciel had been told that when they reached the port town that they would then go north and they would run straight into the ranch after that. It was going to be a long trek that would last for four days, for Malon said that they were going nonstop until they reached the ranch. This was disheartening, but she was the boss and what she said was what was going to happen.

"She's kind of bossy in person," Ciel said to Chris who was looking quite miserable in the rain.

"Yeah, what happened to the sweet girl from the games?" He sighed and leaned towards his sister. "Did you know that she's in her mid thirties? She's way too old for me right now. Why couldn't we have been transported to a Hyrule where she's our age?"

Ciel laughed and gave him a pat on the back. "You'll just have to find someone who's your own age. Maybe Malon has a daughter back in New Castle Town."

"She doesn't, I already asked."

"What are you two talking about?" Kenji rode over and joined their conversation, saying that he was getting sick of the rain. "I hope the weather improves, or I'm going to be hard pressed to find the prince."

Chris looked up at the sky and groaned, seeing no break in the dark clouds anywhere. "I'll wager that this rain will be on us for at least two more days. Consider yourself fortunate, because I doubt any sane person will be traveling in this weather. You'll be able to catch up with the prince before he reaches the castle."

Kenji grinned. "How much are you willing to wager on the weather?"

"I have nothing to wager," was Chris's response. "Besides, I'm not a gambler."

"That's respectable," Kenji said though he was slightly disappointed. He looked out across the landscape and frowned. "Can you believe that this land was once flooded?"

"No, I can't." Ciel had heard from Roland that the entirety of Hyrule Field had been flooded and that not a single part of the old castle could be seen underneath the water. "It all looks like it was never flooded at all."

"Such a strange land, this one is," Chris said with an ominous voice. "The land of legend has many mysteries, or so it would appear." A cow walking nearby turned its head to look at Chris and regarded him with a blank stare. "And what do you think you're doing? Pay attention to where you're stepping, or you're going to trip." The cow mooed at Chris but did as it was told, making the blue haired boy wonder if it had understood him.

"You speak truthfully, Chris. This land is one of mysteries," Kenji agreed, nodding. "Most of them have yet to be solved."

* * *

"Why can't I tell the rain to stop?" Zelda asked Roland as they were walking down a hall to speak with what remained of the Crimson Tears in his office. "I'm the queen, and I have the power to do so much, but the one thing I cannot do is still the depressing rain."

"It's only depressing if you want it to be," he murmured. "Besides, a wise man once said that messing with the weather is dangerous even for the most skilled magicians."

She glared up at him then looked around to see if anyone was within earshot. "Yeah, I know. Gill was torn to pieces when he flooded Hyrule with that storm. I was about to counter his magic, but that idiot just had to get in my way."

Roland sighed, tired of hearing this same argument over and over again. "He did it to save your life. When are you going to forgive him for that?"

"I'll forgive him when you know what happens," she said acidly.

They entered Roland's office and were greeted by four soaking wet men. Three were dressed in respectable, yet casual, outfits and had discarded their weapons, while the youngest of the group was still in possession of his sword and wore a chain mail shirt underneath his tunic as if he expected a battle at any moment. Terence was the first to ask why they had been summoned to the office when they still had other duties to perform.

Zelda took a seat in Roland's chair behind his desk, taking control of the meeting. "Knights of the Crimson Tears, it would appear that Hyrule has need of you once more." They waited patiently for her to elaborate on the statement. "What awaits you may seem to be dishonorable and demeaning, but you all said in your oaths as knights that you were servants of the people."

"Thus the name Crimson Tears," Terence said, smiling whimsically. "We were brought together when the people were crying tears of blood, and we made vows to change that so that one day they could only cry out of joy."

Zelda nodded, resting her chin on her hands. "Exactly, therefore it is necessary for you to help people move to the settlements they choose. I know that the people who lived in Azel Town and other such places wish to return to their old homes, while others have requested that they get their own land that they have titles and deeds to. It's of the utmost importance that these people are satisfied with their placing to ensure that I don't have a group of angry villagers attacking the castle with torches and pitchforks. I'm sorry that I am using you for such a tedious task, but they will appreciate the help and if you are there then you can hear their opinions. Of course we will not allow anyone to move until we are sure that the land is safe, but the people will appreciate that you are willing to help them."

"Finally, something better to do than supervising the square," Reeve said with a smile, raising an approving fist. "I'm all for the idea."

"As am I," Terence said with a nod.

"Mother will be upset, but I can't ignore the peoples' voice," Fandarel murmured, earning an approving nod from Zelda.

"Do not worry, Fandarel. I will take care of Lady Aurora for you." She then directed her attention to Calintz, who was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. She disliked how mysterious he made himself out to be. "What about you, Calintz? How do you feel about this task?"

The white haired knight opened his eyes and looked at everyone for a brief moment. "Who will watch over the castle while we are away?"

"The soldiers are more than enough to protect me, Calintz," Zelda said sternly.

Calintz ignored this prospect. "And what happens when another dispute occurs within the military? Who will remain to break it up? As a knight, I must make sure that all conflicts are taken care of before I can move to the next task. The fight that occurred last week was quite disheartening, and if I had not been there to end it someone would have been killed."

Zelda silenced him with a wave of her hand. "Fine, I get your point. You may stay, but if I catch you lounging around and neglecting your duties I'm going to order that you receive a ration cut."

"When have you ever known me to neglect my duties?"

Zelda ignored him and turned back to the other three. "Fandarel, you will help the people who are living on Dragon Roost Mountain. Reeve, you will take care of those who are in the Goron City. Terence, I want you to help the people who are here in New Castle Town. Roland, I want you to go to the mountains at sea to check on the people down there and see if any of them are planning on settling on the mainland. Calintz, while they are gone you are to make routine checks on the military to make sure that everyone is getting along. This is your priority.

"Good luck everyone, and have safe trips. This meeting is adjourned." She stood up and left the office, Roland close behind her. "What are you still doing here? Get a move on."

The king made no indication that he was leaving. "Perhaps we should contact Grogh, Midori, and Brudegan to see if they want to help."

"Grogh and Brudegan both have jobs in the Goron City. They can't give those up to help the people of Hyrule. And Midori left without telling anyone where she was going years ago. I doubt she would want to help even if we could find her. No, we will not bother them with this."

"As you wish, your majesty." Roland turned around and headed back for his office, muttering, "Link would have been able to rally us all together if he was still here."

Though it was meant to go unheard, Zelda still did and wanted nothing more than to tear out his voice box out of his throat. _Link is no longer here to issue orders, and he gave up that power anyway_.

* * *

The cloaked man crouched low on the roof of a building, ready to disappear or drop depending on the situation. He was concealed quite well with dark clouds in the sky blocking the light of the sun, yet he could hear thunder in the distance and knew that a flash of lightning could give away his position to anyone who happened to be looking where he was at the time. However, he had no need to disappear, for his prey had arrived.

The man below was having trouble unlocking his front door, his hands pained with arthritis. It was a wonder how he managed to play musical instruments and write music with hands such as his. When the cloaked man saw that he had finally managed to open his door, he jumped back and disappeared in a burst of leaves.

Master Petiron rubbed his hands together to warm them, wishing that someone would have started a fire for him. As if his thoughts had struck the chord of magic, the log in his fireplace burst into flames, warming the room almost instantly. The old Harper chuckled and said, "I was wondering when I would see you again." He took off his heavy traveling cloak and hung it on a rack, walking over to the fireplace to warm his frozen hands. "Always sticking your nose in other people's business. What would you like to know this time?"

The cloaked man stared at the older man from inside his hood, making no effort to remove his veil. "The prophecy has come to pass, and the prince has left for the castle. Events have been set into motion that will reshape this land."

"I've missed your mysterious riddles, however I must implore that you get to the point, my friend. I have little time to bandy secret messages with a man who refuses to tell me his identity." Petiron smiled, walking over to his desk. "Now tell me, what information do you seek this time?"

"I seek no knowledge," the cloaked man said darkly, making no attempt to hide his discomfort. "I come to give _you_ knowledge."

"And what knowledge is there that I know nothing about? I'm the Master Harper, Enigma, I know more than you will ever know."

The cloaked man made a noise in his throat that turned into a cold chuckle. "I have come to tell you that crimson tears will be spilled once again. I see blood in the future, and it flows freely. Rivers of it will bathe this land with scarlet veins that will seep into the ocean and kill all life within it. Crimson clouds will open up and drench the world below with their liquid rubies, and a poison will afflict all who touch it."

Petiron frowned. "You use such fancy words for what appears to be a great evil as dark as the Void itself. Why do you tell me this when there are others who can do so much more than I?"

"You must compose a ballad to teach the young of the impending doom that awaits this land. You will write the music, and you will perform it when the time is right. You will know when the time has come."

"Bold words, my friend," Petiron said with his eyebrow raised. "What happens if I ignore your words and do whatever I please?"

"You won't. The music will come to you in the middle of the night, and you will be unable to resist."

"So the right words will just magically come to me and before I know it I will have written a foreboding song that will haunt the great halls of the castle and homes alike?" He shook his head, amused. "You have been predicting such things for the last five years, and I always fall into your words. Very well, Enigma, I shall do this. Be gone from my sight, I have music to write."

The cloaked man spun around and disappeared in a flash of green light, leaving the old Harper alone in his home. "Tears of blood, scarlet rivers, crimson clouds…such colorful descriptions of horrible events."


	13. Chapter 13: Feverish

Chapter 13: Feverish

_This rain is depressing_, Zeke thought in his head as he stared out across Hyrule Field from the edge of the forest. He had left Maiya in the care of Sakura, telling the fairy to inform him of any changes in their companion's condition. After blacking out when he had been removing links of chain mail from the gash on her shoulder, she had not regained consciousness, and it was beginning to worry him. Taking a deep breath, he continued to stare out across the land, wondering just how much longer they would have to wait before they reached the castle. He would have thrown Maiya onto a horse and kept going if he was not afraid that she would become ill.

Maiya had been placed in a more comfortable position before he had left, lying her down on a blanket and folding another one to support her head. He had given her half of the blankets they had brought along with them just to ensure her comfort. Hopefully, she would stay warm underneath the two blankets he had thrown over her.

Running his hand through his hair, he became aware that he was still covered in mud. He had seen to cleaning Maiya's face and hair, also removing her boots so that she would be more comfortable while she was unconscious, but had completely disregarded himself. The idea of being clean again was appealing to him, so he stepped out into the downpour of rain and let himself be soaked. Vigorously running his hands through his red hair, he made sure that no clumps of mud were left to cause knots or otherwise make him look like he was without a home.

He scrubbed at his face and arms, relieving his skin of the strange feeling of having something caked onto it. Feeling that there was enough privacy out in the field, he removed his tunic, chain mail, and the long sleeved undershirt he wore. Using his fingernails, he picked at the dirt and grime that covered his tunic, deciding there was little he could do to clean the chain mail until he returned home and the undershirt he deemed suitable since it was already a shade of brown. He could live with the grass stains on his tunic, thinking that the stains and the threads were close enough in color for no one to notice, but the mud had to come off at all costs. It occurred to him that at home someone else would have been cleaning his tunic, and he found that he respected those people for taking his dirty clothes and washing them to look like they were new. Washing clothing was tough work, and he made a mental note to thank whoever washed his tunics at home.

After he was positive that he had removed as much of the grime from his tunic as he thought possible, he tossed it onto a tree branch, along with his chain mail and undershirt. Removing his boots, he used a stick to scrape off the muck that made them appear lumpy and uncomfortable.

_What are you doing_? Sakura asked him with her mind, looking through his eyes.

_I'm cleaning my clothes. I may be out where no one will see me, but I refuse to look like a slob_, he responded, wiping his boots off on a dry patch of grass below a tree.

_You should clean Maiya's tunic then. I think she would appreciate it_.

Zeke slipped his boots back on and, grabbing his three shirts, returned to the campsite. "How is she?" he asked as he came near enough to be heard.

"No change since the last time you asked," the fairy said, looking at the girl with a worried expression. "What if she is dead?"

The prince frowned, tossing a pinecone at Sakura. "First of all, that is not a pleasant thing to say. Keep those kinds of thoughts to yourself. Secondly, you can see her breathing, so she's still alive." He picked up Maiya's tunic and saw that it too needed immediate attention. "I should probably clean this right now, or some of these stains might not come out."

"What about her pants?"

"What about them?"

"They're dirty too."

Zeke felt the temperature of his ears rise. "She's still wearing them. I don't know about you fairies, but humans don't generally involve themselves with the opposite gender's clothing." However, just from the little bit of her pants that he could see he could tell that they would need tending to as well. "For me to remove her pants would be like taboo."

"It is forbidden?" she asked.

"In a sense, yes. I really wouldn't want to do it without her permission, but my own personal morals are the main reason why I refuse to do it. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go tend to this tunic and my own pants." He took a blanket from his saddlebags to wrap around himself, and then he returned to the field. Sakura, though inherently knowledgeable about many things, was quite naïve in regards to the dealings of humans, and quite likely other creatures.

Zeke found it rather annoying, but there was little he could do about it except to have the fairy educated by someone in the Archives or something. Standing in the rain, he got Maiya's tunic as wet as he could before attempting to rub out some of the green and brown stains that covered the pink and white tunic. The job was tedious, but in the end he thought that he had done an acceptable job in cleaning it.

"Very nice, she will probably thank you for your thoughtfulness."

Zeke turned and saw Sakura floating over with a pair of grime-covered pants that seemed to be too heavy for her wings. "Sakura, please don't tell me those are Maiya's."

"They are. While you may have reservations about taking them off of her, I do not. I would be considered a female, and therefore I can say that it does not bother me to invade on Maiya's privacy as a girl." She dropped the pants at Zeke's feet and took a moment to rest on a tree branch. "And now I can rest assured that she truly is a girl like she says. I must admit that I had my doubts."

"And who's watching her if you're here?" Zeke asked as feelings of annoyance entered his mind for the fairy's negligence and blocked out the embarrassing thoughts that plagued his mind.

"I did not take long getting over here," Sakura said in her defense, taking flight again and heading back to the campsite to watch Maiya.

Loosing a frustrated sigh, he resumed his washing of their clothes.

"Why are you not wearing your clothes, Zeke?" Sakura asked as he returned to the campsite with nothing on but a blanket he had wrapped around his waist. The fairy waited for a response while Zeke hung the clothes on tree branches.

"They need to dry first." He took a seat next to the fire and bowed his head so hard that his hair all fell in front of his face, beginning the long process of drying his hair. "How's Maiya?"

Sakura looked down at the girl from her perch on a branch and shook her little head. "No change," she said. Feeling that the news was unwanted, she added, "She is still breathing though." Stretching her wings out, she hopped off the branch and floated down to Zeke and landed on his bare shoulder. "How long are you going to remain naked?"

Zeke scowled. "Aren't you naked underneath all that light?"

"No, I am wearing a short skirted gown that is unique to fairies."

Zeke took a closer look at the fairy, squinting against the light. "So you are. Well, like I said before, I have to wait for my clothes to dry before I can put them on again. The fire should dry them pretty quickly." He tied his hair back into a low ponytail and stretched, his muscles rippling underneath his skin. Though people assumed he lived a pretty lax lifestyle, Zeke took great care of his body. He was not going to allow himself to be out of shape in case someone ever made a comment about him being a lazy prince.

However, much to his displeasure, using a sword had made his right shoulder and bicep slightly larger than the left. _I'm going to have to practice with my left hand if I want to maintain an even build_.

"No…not that…please…no…"

Both Zeke and Sakura turned to see Maiya writhing underneath her blankets, moaning and ranting. They both acted at the same time, rushing to Maiya's side. Zeke frowned and he placed a hand on his forehead and the other on hers, checking her temperature. "She's got a fever." He jumped up and went to his saddlebags, removing his medical kit again.

"What do we do?" Sakura asked, looking to Zeke for guidance. She gasped when he had thrown a white cloth on top of her. "What is this for?"

"Go get it wet with the rain water and bring it back."

"Okay, what will we do with it then?"

"We'll put it on her forehead."

"And that does what?"

Zeke thought about it, and realized he had no idea. "I don't know, but people have been doing it for hundreds of years to help with fever so it must work or at least do something helpful. Now get going." Sakura left to do as she was told, leaving Zeke with Maiya. He bent down close to her mouth to hear what she was mumbling, holding his ponytail back so it would not fall into her face.

"Please…I didn't mean to…"

"What didn't you mean to do?" Zeke asked, hoping that she would respond.

"Please father…don't be angry…I didn't mean to…to…" Zeke had pulled back just in time to avoid having Maiya sitting bolt upright and smacking her head into his. Her scream echoed in the forest for a few moments as she panted, trying to catch her breath. Hugging her knees, she quietly sobbed.

"Maiya, are you okay?" Zeke gently rubbed her back, hoping to help calm her.

She looked at him with a haunted gaze, her face glistening with sweat. "Zeke…" Her voice was just barely audible above the sound of rain.

Zeke could now see that she was completely drenched with sweat. Her undershirt was soaked, and even the blanket she had been lying on was saturated with perspiration. However, this was not the thing that worried him the most. With her looking at him, he saw that her eyes were glossed over, and when she squinted and held out her hand to touch him, it was clear that her vision was blurry. Whether this was a side affect of the fever or the blood loss he could not tell, but it was clear that Maiya was far from well. "I'm here, Maiya." He took her outstretched hand and squeezed it, halting her trembling.

"Zeke, I…" she could not finish her sentence for her body started shivering and the cold that enveloped her body made her gasp.

Not even taking the time to think out a plan, Zeke scooted over to Maiya and wrapped his arms around her. Touching her skin felt like a punch in the gut, for she was as cold as ice, and having been seated next to the fire his skin was a couple degrees warmer than it normally was. But despite this he held her tightly, unwilling to let her freeze.

The longer he held her, the less violent her shivering became. Eventually she was able to finish a sentence, but it was one that Zeke had not expected. "Zeke, please turn around."

"What?"

"Turn around. I want to take off this shirt because it's soaking wet, but I'm not going to do that with you looking at me." She rubbed her face and turned her gaze onto the prince, her eyes a little clearer than they had been.

Zeke did as she asked, and cringed when he saw her undershirt thrown to a branch near him, dripping with sweat. He could hear her stand up, but did not dare turn around.

"So what happened to me?"

"You had a fever and you were moaning."

"That would explain the sweat." When she sat down next to him, she gave him a long and searching look. She had wrapped a dry blanket around her like a towel, allowing Zeke a clear look at her exposed shoulders. "Where are my pants?" He pointed at the branch where her tunic and pants were hanging to dry. "How did they get there?"

"Sakura told me I should have washed them, but I told her that morally it would be wrong for me to invade on your privacy like that. I went out into the rain to wash your tunic, and she appeared a little later with your pants."

This surprised her greatly. "How did she manage to do that?"

"Ask her. I wasn't watching. I'm not a pervert."

"And for that I'm glad." She stretched her back and grimaced. "I could really use a hot bath right about now." She undid her ponytail and bunched her hair all together, wringing out the sweat that had wet her hair. "Do you think any of the baths in the castle still work?"

Zeke shrugged, "Anything's possible." He noticed a floating cloth and realized that Sakura had returned, and she appeared to be angry.

"You do not need this, do you?" she asked, huffing from flapping her wings while carrying the heavy cloth.

"Sorry. It would appear that Maiya is fine." Sakura threw the cloth at Zeke and flew off to fume, muttering about how she was being used and abused. "Thanks anyway!" he called after her, but he was positive that the fairy had just given him a rude hand gesture.

"Aw, you two are so sweet. Looking after me while I'm ill," Maiya said with a smile, leaning into Zeke and batting her eyelashes at him. "How can I ever repay you?"

Zeke smiled. "I'm just glad you're okay. When you passed out I was afraid that you had lost too much blood."

"Oh yeah, I got cut." She looked at her upper arm and poked the bandage. "I can't feel a thing."

"You can thank Lady Aurora for that. I applied one of her numbing agents before I wrapped the bandage around it." Taking her arm, he inspected the bandage to see if it needed replacing. "It seems unaffected by your sweat, so it should be still be good until tomorrow."

Maiya took his hand off her arm and made him look at her. "Seriously. How can I repay you for taking care of me?"

"I didn't even do much. There's no need to be so formal."

Maiya placed a finger over his lips to keep him from talking. "I'm going to ask you one more time, and if I don't get an acceptable response I'm going to throw you into the fire. How can I thank you?"

Zeke thought long and hard if there was anything she had that he needed, but something came to mind and pushed everything else back. "Tell me why you kissed me the other night." Her face went blank and she looked away from him, too ashamed to look him in the eye. "I really must know, Maiya."

"Can you really not find the answer on your own?" Whatever words he would have said were stopped in his throat as a lump formed and constricted his breathing. With ten words, Maiya had inadvertently given him her answer, yet he could not get passed the hard lump in his throat to speak. "I'm told it runs in the family," she explained, keeping her gaze on her hands that she had clenched in her lap. "Nearly thirty years ago when your grandmother Faye was still alive, my grandfather, Godric, was in the Order of Knights, and he had developed a profound infatuation with the queen. It was almost an obsession, but she was murdered and he had lost all interest in women entirely. It was only by sheer luck that he had found someone who bore a striking resemblance to the queen and he married her. Together they had a son, and he grew up to become entranced by your mother."

Biting her lip, she finished by saying, "My family bears the curse of falling in love with royalty." However, she lost control of her lips and more words emerged despite her objections to saying more. "When I first saw you it was when we were eleven. My mother had brought me to New Castle Town to get me a job. Our income was small, and my mother wanted me to have a nice place to live instead of our home. After my discouraging interview with Master Petiron, I was sent to the Archives and that was when I first saw you. You were trailing behind your mother while she was on an errand. You caught my attention because of your red hair, and your green eyes. My heart started to beat so fast and hard I thought it was going to escape my chest.

"I thought that you were the most handsome boy in all of Hyrule, if not the world, and I thought that the Goddesses had truly blessed me to have shown you to me, but then you left and I thought that it was just a cruel joke that fate was playing on me. But I saw you again not a week later. You had returned to the Archives to get something for someone, and it was then that I decided that I was going to do whatever it took to get a position working the front desk.

"Then four years later, my goal had been achieved. I became the front desk attendant, and I could see you once a week when you came into the Archives to request a scroll. It was like a dream, those afternoons when you would come in. It felt like time had frozen. You would ask me to get you a scroll, and I would always ask someone else to get it for you so I could prolong our conversations, but you never had much to say and on a few occasions you ignored me or brushed off my question, calling me nosy. Yet this did not deter me, for I was determined to have you notice me. I spent months trying to gain your attention, and time and time again you would spurn my advances. I was becoming increasingly frustrated, and when you ruined my application to become a servant in the castle, I lost it and took out my frustration on you.

"By doing that, I was sent to the barracks where I could become a high ranking individual, and I prayed that this would be the way to earn your respect. I worked so hard to rise above and beyond my peers, earning their rejection in the process. On several occasions, the other girls in the academy would beat me for making them look lazy and unskilled, but I told myself that it would be worth it if I could just get up high enough in rank for you to notice me.

"Then, your mother came down to the barracks saying that she needed someone to go with you to the old castle and lend their aid to you. She said that she would watch us train that day and that the most outstanding soldier would be chosen. By the time I was done training that day, my hands were blistered from relentlessly tearing apart my sparring partners and beating on their shields with my sword. Terence had me explain to the military smith why half the shields had been battered, but it was all worth it because the queen had chosen me to accompany you on your quest. I no longer cared about anything else, for nothing else mattered. I was going to be together with the person I had grown to love for what could be weeks, or if I was lucky, months.

"Then the other night, I lost control of myself. When you refused to do what any other boy in the world would do, I was overwhelmed by just how respectful you are. I looked at you, and before I knew it I had pulled you close enough for me to kiss you and I took the opportunity."

For some reason, the explanation had brought tears to her eyes, and Zeke felt guilty for making her tell him. She looked up at him for the first time since he asked her to tell him and her crimson eyes were staring at him pleadingly. "You must think I am an obsessive freak to have made it my lifelong goal to be with you, but when I heard that your mother had married someone who had no rank at all until he became a knight, I thought that the same could happen for me."

It felt strange to have someone crave his affection to such a degree, but he was not disgusted by the notion like he thought he would have been if Maiya would have admitted this all to him before they left for the old castle. Taking her hands in his, he thought about what he was going to say for a long while before speaking. Looking into her tear filled scarlet eyes with his emerald green eyes, he brought his hand up and gently brushed a tear away with his thumb. "I don't know how to explain how I feel at the moment," he said slowly. She closed her eyes and a fresh wave of tears escaped her. "But I hope this will clarify some things for the both of us." Embracing a wave of courage that ran through his veins, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers.

"What are you going to say this time? That you are 'practicing' again?" Zeke and Maiya broke off the kiss and saw Sakura flying towards them, a smug expression on the fairy's face. "Or are you going to admit to something?"

Zeke smiled slyly. "We were communicated through touch telepathy."

"What is that?" Sakura asked, stopping in between them.

"That's when you send a message to someone by touching them," Zeke explained, trying his hardest not to laugh like Maiya was. "It's like how we can communicate with our minds, but I could only do it through touch with Maiya."

"Oh, that makes sense, I think." Sakura turned to Maiya and gave her a quizzical stare. "What did he tell you?"

Maiya looked down at the fairy with a big smile, bringing up her hands for her to stand on so she could rest her wings. "Zeke told me that all my dreams have come true."

"Oh, well that is weird. Why would he tell you something like that?" Sakura looked at them both, confused and regretting her meddling. "Well, I am going to return to my tree now." She flew off and left them alone.

Maiya wrapped her arms around Zeke and leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder. "So is there any girl back home I should know about?"

"Yeah," Zeke mumbled. "Two actually." Maiya gave him a horrified look. "Faye, my little sister. She'll have to approve of you before it gets real serious, and my mom will want to make sure you can abuse me just as well as she can." The response made Maiya laugh, which Zeke was grateful for. Still worried about her health, he checked her temperature again and gazed deeply into her eyes.

"What's wrong, Zeke?" she asked softly, allowing him to do as he pleased.

Holding her face in his hands they mirrored a small smile, but Zeke still found his words to be a burden. "You are still feverish and your eyes are dull. I'm sorry to say that you are unwell and will probably remain that way for some time." The silence that followed bore down upon his shoulders like the weight of the world as it gave him the time to consider why Maiya had confessed to him.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Maiya asked, but she went limp in his arms and Zeke felt a tug at his heart. Placing her back where she had been passed out the first time, the prince stared into the fire, angry with himself for being drawn into a girl's feverish ramblings.

"It means that you only said all of this because you are feverish, and tomorrow morning you won't remember a thing that happened on this night," he said through clenched teeth. What he regretted the most was opening up his heart enough to share an intimate gesture with Maiya, only to find out that she was only half conscious.

"What is wrong with Maiya?" Sakura asked, floating lazily down to Zeke, taking a seat on his bare shoulder.

Zeke looked at the fairy and then at Maiya. "She's still not feeling well, and she passed out from her fever." Pulling out their map, he pointed at the castle and frowned. "I think we're going to stay at the castle for a little while longer than originally anticipated. With Maiya ill, it would be cruel to ride back home with her this way, so we'll stay at the castle until she's feeling better."

The fairy flapped her wings absentmindedly, causing a clear note sound in the area around them. "I think that is a good plan. It would do you some good too."

"How so?"

"It will give you some time to relax," Sakura explained. "Perhaps you and Maiya could practice your _touch telepathy_ while we are there." When Zeke gave her a questioning glance she crossed her arms and frowned. "I am not stupid, Zeke. I know a kiss when I see one."

The next morning, Zeke was disappointed to see that it was still raining, and considered just staying put for the day. However it was imperative that they get to the castle, if not merely for Maiya's sake. With her ill their progress would be slower than before, and after it took a considerable amount of time to coax Maiya into riding with him so he could make sure she would not pass out while in the saddle Zeke wondered if it would be worth it. The day was going to be a long one indeed. Donning hooded cloaks that would help keep them dry, they set out into the rain once again, determined to reach the castle soon.

As they were continuing along the edge of the forest, they heard someone calling their names from the sky. Looking above them, they saw a Rito angling down towards them. They stopped their horses and waited for the messenger to land. "Prince Zeke, Lady Maiya, I have a message for you from Master Harper Petiron," the Rito said, reaching into his delivery bag. He handed Zeke the message and went into a routine of stretching his back and arms.

_To the prince of Hyrule and the mistress of the barracks, Zeke and Maiya,_

_ I send word to you to inform you that one of my Harpers will be joining you in the near future. If you happen to reach the castle before him, please wait until he catches up with you. It is of the utmost importance that he be there to catalogue your journey, so I would encourage you to inform him of everything you may have already discovered so he can accurately compose a lyric about your historical venture. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation._

_Most Sincerely Yours,_

_Master Harper Petiron_

"I wonder who he's sending to catch up with us," Maiya said after Zeke had read through the letter. "I sure hope whoever it is has a fast horse, or he'll never catch up to us."

"I don't have any problem with lounging in the castle until he shows up," Zeke suggested, exchanging a wink with his fairy. He turned his attention to the Rito and thanked him for delivering the message, reaching into his wallet to give him a tip.

"There's no need, prince," the postman said, holding up a hand to decline the tip. "Just doing my job. Good day to you both." He jumped into the air and flew off into the sky, disappearing into the clouds.

"There are three of us, you blind birdman," Sakura mumbled, looking out from inside Zeke's hood. "Why does no one pay attention to me?"

"You weren't exactly out on display, you know," Zeke mentioned, hoping to ease the fairy's temper. "Are you alright, Sakura? You've been kind of moody lately."

Sakura sighed and said, "I am homesick."

"Aw, Sakura. How can we help you?" Maiya asked.

"I do not know, but I would much like to return to the forest soon."

"Well, when we're done with the castle, we can all go to the forest where you're from," Zeke offered. "How does that sound?"

"I like that idea."

"So it's settled then," Maiya said with a smile. "We're going to go visit your home when we've completed this errand." She peered into Zeke's hood and gave the fairy a smile. "Sakura, I think I speak for both Zeke and myself when I say that you're like a part of our small family. We want to see you happy."

"Really? Part of a family?" The excitement in the fairy's voice was unmistakable; she very desperately wished to be part of a family.

Zeke smiled. "Sure, I don't see why not. One more sister couldn't hurt."

Overjoyed, Sakura flew out into the rain and whooped in jubilation. However this was soon extinguished when she was denied her place inside of Zeke's hood on account that she was wet.


	14. Chapter 14: Lazy and Bored

Chapter 14: Lazy and Bored

The next few days passed so slowly it was almost painful. On one side of Hyrule Field, Zeke was busy keeping Maiya seated in his saddle when she would randomly pass out from her fever, and Sakura was constantly needing something to do.

On the other side of the field, Ciel, Chris, and Kenji had to put up with a herd of cattle and Malon, who was hardly the easiest person to get along with. Halfway to the ranch, Chris started complaining about having blisters in a place he was not at liberty to discuss, and Ciel was likewise uncomfortable, but for a completely different reason that left her with a bad mood and abdominal cramps.

With the other knights absent from the castle halls, Calintz found that he had little to do in between trips to the military grounds to check on the soldiers, and started to make up things for him to do just to keep himself occupied and not thinking of other things that were not related to his knightly duties.

Zelda found herself playing with Faye in the throne room one afternoon because no one had come to discuss business with her and she had nothing to do. Not that she minded, after all, her daughter was the apple of her eye, and Faye seemed to enjoy the one on one mother-daughter time they were getting.

Roland decided to skip out on his orders for a little while one day to go fishing in the islands south of the coast, but realized that he had no where to put his catch and ended up returning home for a few seconds to put his fish in the tank where fish were kept until they were eaten.

Fandarel and Reeve finished their orders within the first two days and decided to stay in the areas they had been ordered to go to and relaxed for a little while, free of the Queen's watchful eye, while Terence merely made himself scarce at the castle to avoid being given orders so he could enjoy a much needed and deserved vacation.

*

"How much farther, Maiya?" Zeke asked, peering over her shoulder to get a look at the map. Since she could not ride her own horse in her current condition, she was forced to ride with Zeke, and as such was more of a burden than help. In order to increase her usefulness, she took it upon herself to chart their progress on their map, accurately marking every place they had stopped at.

"We'll be able to head west in a little while," she responded, pointing at their location, and then moving her finger to the point where she had decided would be the spot where they would turn away from the trees. "After we start going west, it will only be another day's ride to the castle, and then I can raid your mothers old wardrobe and take a bath."

Zeke smiled. "At least you have goals. I wouldn't mind exploring the castle for a while." A memory of talking with Sir Link appeared in his head, and he became curious as to which room was his. "I've heard that the architecture is better than our castle, so it should be interesting to say the least."

Sakura came flying down from the sky, overjoyed that the rain had finally stopped. "Oh wretched rain, you will not be missed," she said as she perched on Zeke's shoulder. "I have discovered that I really dislike the rain."

The two humans laughed and agreed with the fairy's newfound aversion to falling water. "It's a pain in the rear," Maiya said with a smile. "If it wasn't for the rain, I probably wouldn't be as ill as I am."

"How are you feeling, by the way?" Zeke asked, reaching up to see if her fever had gone down. Her forehead was still too hot, but she hardly seemed affected by it for the time being. However, this was hardly a good sign. They had found that Maiya would pass out more often when she was feeling fine, while she was more likely to remain conscious when she felt miserable.

"Half and half, I suppose," she responded. She explained to Zeke that while she was feeling energetic and lively, she still felt sick and would probably over exert herself easily if she decided to do something requiring a lot of her energy. "Keep your arms around me just in case."

While she had been honest with Zeke the night before in confessing her love for him, the prince had been correct in saying that she hardly remembered a thing. Sakura had asked her about "touch telepathy" as a test, but Maiya only raised an eyebrow and asked what it was. However, this did not erase Zeke's memory of that night, and when he felt her lean back into him slightly after he tightened his arms around her he knew that she still had strong feelings for him, even if she did not remember telling him.

"I am feeling like I do not want to sit around anymore," Sakura mumbled, stretching out her arms and falling backwards so that she was leaning against Zeke's neck.

"You're bored?" Zeke asked. "Want me to give you something to do?"

The fairy started to snore, and both Zeke and Maiya laughed. "So much for giving her something to do, eh?"

* * *

Ciel rubbed her eyes tiredly, having been without sleep for the last few days. It was hard to tell if it was still raining because at one point she stopped feeling the rain drops even though she could very clearly see them pouring all around her. When the rain had actually stopped and the sun broke through the clouds, she was unsure which she preferred, the rain that drenched her clothes but kept dark clouds in the sky that made it easy to see, or the sunny sky that burned her eyes whenever she looked in the direction of the sun.

"How much further?" she asked Kenji, catching herself as she was about to fall out of her saddle. The archivist appeared to be fairing no better than she was, with dark circles under his eyes and a slumped back, it was painfully obvious that he was used to living a rather lax life back in New Castle Town.

He reached around for his map in a confused way, wondering where he had put it. When he found it, he pulled so hard that he tore it in half. Peering at Ciel through the rip in the two halves, he mumbled, "Well, according to the map we have to cross a giant empty space before we can continue." Ciel laughed, and he held the pieces together. "One more day if we're lucky. The way Malon is driving us you would think we'd be there already."

No other words had to be said on the subject. It was a common conversation among the three youth that the redheaded rancher girl was tougher than a virus that had been given a firewall to prevent someone from sending an antivirus at it, although Kenji could only guess what that was supposed to mean.

Ciel pointed over at her brother and sighed. "Looks like this lack of sleep is really starting to take its toll."

Chris was talking to the same cow that he had been chastising for its negligence on the first day they started out. He could always find it because it had a distinct coloration and a white spot on its head that was shaped like a duck. At the moment, he was discussing programming codes with the cow, and it was mooing back at him in a way that made it look like it was actually responding to his words.

"Binary is very simple really, when you know what it is and how to do it," Chris was saying, swaying a little in his saddle. "You just got to remember that the Class A address of 127 is reserved for loop back and diagnostic functions."

"Moo."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, see? If you're a good programmer, like myself, you can program your email with this address and it will send all of your junk mail right back to whoever sent it to you."

"Moo."

"The OSI model? What do you want to know about that for?"

"Moo."

"Well, it's broken up into data, segments…"

"I can't make heads or tails out of what he's talking about," Kenji mumbled, feeling unintelligent compared to Chris. "Should I know what he's talking about?"

Ciel laughed weakly and shook her head. "I only understand about half of what he's saying myself. That knowledge has no use here in Hyrule I'm afraid. Although if that cow ever goes to our world it'll be able to program anything it wants."

Kenji scratched his head. "I'm still having trouble believing you're from another world, Ciel. It just seems so unlikely."

"How do you think I feel? You're not the one who spent half of a day walking around in your pajamas thinking that you were dreaming. That was so embarrassing."

"Hey! Quit slacking off back there!"

Kenji grimaced. "That woman is going to kill us all." Turning his horse away from Ciel's, he went after a cow that had strayed away from the rest of the group.

Much to Ciel's dismay, Malon rode back and took the place Kenji had been occupying. "I know you're tired, but you need to keep your eyes open for things like that."

"I'm sorry," Ciel mumbled, bowing her head.

"Don't be. This isn't really your thing, so I'm okay with you doing poorly," Malon laughed. "Now if my good friend Link were here we would be at the ranch already."

"You know Link?"

" 'Course I do. I used to love that man, but he spurned my advances and made all my dreams crash down around me."

Ciel stared at the woman curiously. It had always been a popular topic amongst Legend of Zelda fans, but she had never placed much merit to the idea of Malon and Link as a couple since she had always wanted Link for herself. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Malon waved her words aside. "Don't be, I was just a silly girl with big hopes back then. I'm quite happy being on my own. Men can all die and go to the Void for all I care."

Ciel started to think that Malon was no longer attracted to men, and then her heart leaped into her throat. _Oh God, what if she's into women now?_

* * *

The soldiers were lining up for marching drills as the white haired knight looked down from a rampart. He had taken it upon himself to make sure that the archers in the towers had enough arrows, or at least good equipment. Ever since Sir Grogh had left the Crimson Tears, Calintz noticed that the quality of weapons had dropped significantly. Tips would break instead of penetrating, and bows would often shatter, sending splinters into the eyes of anyone nearby. Reeve had to chastise the man who was in charge of making the bows, showing him the correct way of doing it.

Calintz even went to the military black smith and showed him the proper way of forging arrowheads, having been taught a few things by Sir Grogh. It was a tedious task to attend to, but one that was necessary. He was glad that the number of accidents had dropped in the last few months since he and Reeve had said something to the weapon makers.

As he was approaching the first watchtower, he noticed that the watch deck in the tower was empty of anyone. This angered him greatly, but he knew that he had to control his anger, at least for the time being. Drawing his sword, he ran at the door to the tower and kicked it open, brandishing his sword and yelling at the top of his lungs. He stopped yelling prematurely, for the entire tower was empty. Not a single person was at his post in the tower, and it looked like it had been empty for the passed few weeks.

Calintz smiled. Now he could show his anger, for this was an unacceptable sight he found before him. Using Farore's Wind, he disappeared from the tower and reappeared right in front of the general on the training grounds, scaring the man so badly he fell over. "General Argus, I feel that there is need for us to share words."

The man jumped to his feet, still shaking. While Calintz was young, younger than many of the military men at least, he was feared by most, and the only people who did not were either royalty or new recruits who had no knowledge of him. It was this fear that made his job so easy on occasion, and he rather enjoyed playing with peoples' fear. "Yes, Sir Calintz? What brings you here?"

"You look nervous, general," Calintz said smoothly, a sign that he had lost control of his anger. "Why so tense?"

General Argus tried his best to keep his hands from shaking, but was unable to still them completely. "You startled me is all. How can I help you?"

Calintz took a bow and arrow from a passing soldier held it before him. "Observe." Blowing on the tip of the arrow he set the steel ablaze with Din's Fire and, knocking the arrow, he drew the string and let the arrow fly. It arched up into the sky and embedded itself in the wooden platform of the watchtower he had just visited.

When no one came to put out the fire, General Argus became rigid with fear. Calintz pointed up at the tower and took a deep breath. "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO PROTECT THE QUEEN IF WE HAVE NO ONE IN THE WATCHTOWERS TO SEE THE ENEMY?" he shouted, watching the general cower under him. "IF I DON'T SEE THE REGULATION FIVE ARCHERS UP THERE BY THE END OF THE DAY I'M GOING TO SKIN YOU AND PIN UP YOUR HIDE IN THE BARRACKS AS A CONSTANT REMINDER OF WHAT COULD HAPPEN IF WE NEGLECT OUR DUTIES!"

General Argus bowed deeply and stammered a quick reply that sounded like "I'll get right on it" but Calintz had scared him so badly that he became incoherent. The man ran off to find as many archers as he could fit in the tower, and Calintz knew that he would not have to come back down to the training grounds for a while with a problem on his mind.

With a snap of his fingers, the fire that had spread in the tower was extinguished and he headed back up to the castle where he was going to speak to the queen about the discipline of the military.

* * *

"What's your report, Calintz?" Zelda asked, hoping that he would give her something to do with her time instead of sitting in the throne room by herself and waiting for something to happen.

Calintz noticed the hopeful look on the queen's face and inwardly laughed. It was apparent that he was not the only one with a slow day. "Your majesty, I took it upon myself to check the status of the watchtowers today, and do you know what I found?"

"Lazy soldiers that need to be reprimanded?" she asked, hoping to be the one to rush down to the towers to scold the irresponsible pigs.

"Nothing, nothing at all. It turns out that it was a station that was deemed unnecessary and it was cut from the rotation." The look on Calintz's face was mirrored in the queen's. "Do not worry, for I saw to it that the stations were filled."

With a scowl, Zelda uncrossed her legs and stood up to pace around her throne. "It has only been eighteen years since Ardor attacked us. How could they forget so easily?" Turning to Calintz, she said, "Thank you for this report. I would like you to go and check the rest of the defense rotation to make sure that nothing else has been deemed unnecessary." The knight bowed and turned to leave, but Zelda had one more order for him. "Calintz, could you go get Faye for me?"

Surprised by this request, he accepted it lightly, wondering what reasons there could be for summoning the little princess. "As you wish, your majesty."

"Oh knock that off," she said with a frown. "When it's just us and the knights, I'm Zelda. We've known each other too long to succumb to formalities."

"Whatever you say, _Zell_."

"However _that_ I could do without."

Faye poked her head into the throne room shyly, not sure if there was anyone in it doing business with her mom. The queen was just lounging on her throne in a way that seemed quite unladylike, having dismissed her guards for the time being. Slowly, Faye walked into the throne room, completely sure that she was in trouble.

"Mom?"

Zelda turned her head and smiled. "Hey Sweetie. How are you doing today?"

The little princess, and she was quite little being smaller in size than any other girl her age and smaller than any princess in recorded history, walked over to her mother, trying to appear dignified like she was expected to be. "I'm okay. I've kept my dress clean and I haven't beaten up any boys for calling me shrimp."

"That's very good, I'm proud of you." Zelda helped Faye up into her lap and fixed a messy lock of hair that had escaped the girl's notice that morning when she was brushing her hair. "Well, I'm going to be honest with you, Faye. I'm bored and my schedule is open for the rest of the day. How would you like to try your hand at being queen for the day?"

"Really?" Faye's sapphire blue eyes became as wide as saucers, her mouth hanging open like someone who had not seen food in weeks.

Zelda closed her daughter's mouth and giggled. "Yeah, really. Make any order you want and I'll make sure it's followed. So go on ahead, make your first decree."

"By order of me, I command that a maid bring me a big piece of cake."

With a laugh, Zelda summoned a maid, but not before giving Faye a bit of advice. "Come on, Faye. I've given you the power to make any command you want. You sure you want just a _piece_ of cake?"

Faye looked up at her mom timidly. "But what about my diet? Lady Aurora says that if I don't eat healthy that I'll get fat."

Looking her daughter in the eye, Zelda said, "I used to sneak cake from the kitchen all the time when I was your age and for many years up to now, and I have yet to get fat."

"Okay." Sitting up straight, Faye regarded the maid with a cute but authoritative stare. "Bring me a whole cake and a glass of your best wine…for my mom." She smiled as the maid bowed and left to do as she was told.

"Aw, you're such a sweetheart, getting mommy something to drink while she's working." After watching Faye order a few soldiers to tap dance for her, Zelda said, "You're a natural at this. Perhaps you're the right one to succeed me after all?"

Faye shook her head and gave her mother an intelligent stare. "I'm only good at fulfilling my own selfish desires. Zeke would be better because he listens to the moaning and groaning of people and he would be able to find a way to make everyone happy." Though it pained her to consider it, Zelda asked her daughter if Zeke should be the one to follow her as King. "I'm no expert," Faye said as she accepted her cake from the maid. "But I think it takes someone who knows pain to prevent pain."

Zelda frowned down at her daughter, taking the girl's hand and concentrating for a moment. When nothing happened, she dismissed the crazy idea that had come to her mind and took the glass of wine being offered to her. "You're quite wise for someone who has yet to see ten years, young lady."

Looking up at her mom with cake frosting all over her face, Faye smiled and giggled. "Thanks, mom."

Laughing, Zelda wiped the frosting off of her little girl's face with a handkerchief. "However, if you've got cake smeared all over your face I doubt anyone will pay much attention to you."

* * *

_Once again, Roland neglects his duties to go fishing. Just goes to show that you can take the fisherman out of the sea, but not the sea out of the fisherman._ Though the sun was bearing down like an inferno, Enigma kept his hooded cloak on to keep his identity a secret. His boots sunk into the sand as he crossed the beach to the wooden dock where the king of Hyrule sat with his fishing pole. "I believe the queen gave you another task, Roland, son of Jericho."

Roland looked over his shoulder, tipping up his fishing hat to get a better look at the man walking over to him. "And how do you come by this knowledge, Enigma?" He waited for the man to take a seat before returning his attention to the sea. "I suppose I shouldn't ask. Your knowledge is always rather frightening, and I'd rather not know how you come by it."

"You can trust me when I say that my knowledge is found in a rather simple manner."

Giving the man a brief look, Roland shook his head. "I can't believe you wear that all the time. Always in a cloak, gloves, boots, and a scarf over your face. While the weather up north is starting to drop in temperature with summer ending, down here it is a little on the warm side."

"When keeping one's identity a secret is more important than his comfort, he'll brave the worst of weather in a completely inappropriate style of clothing."

"I suppose that's true. So what brings you here?"

Enigma reached into his cloak and pulled out a glass bottle filled with a clear liquid. "A gift from Queen Noèlle of Ondine. Over the last eighteen years, while the rest of Hyrule has been flooded, the bottomless chasms around the city of Ondine have kept the city from being flooded. Noèlle has been working hard on rejuvenating the city, however there is still little that makes it very attractive. This is a trade offer for supplies and help."

"I see," Roland muttered, examining the bottle curiously. "What is this?"

"It is a beverage that helps with pain. It burns a little on the way down, but it numbs any place in your body that hurts almost instantly. However, it is not to be taken in large doses and it does nothing to actually heal your injuries."

"I take it you've tried it?"

"On occasion. Being discreet can be dangerous sometimes."

Roland opened the bottle and took a swig from it, wincing a little as he swallowed the liquid. He grunted approvingly as pain faded away from a few bruises he had sustained in the last few days. "When you see Queen Noèlle, tell her that I believe she has come across something we Hyrulians may have use of. I would like to discuss her terms of trade, so tell her to be expecting company soon."

"With the barrier around Ondine altered to allow entrance by Farore's Wind, you can drop by whenever you'd like."

"Is that where you're from, Enigma? Ondine?"

The cloaked man stood up and laughed, a chilling sound for any who heard it. "Wouldn't you like to know." He disappeared in a burst of leaves, leaving Roland guessing.

Roland shrugged off the mysterious man's words and returned his attention to his fishing just in time to reel in a good sized red snapper. "Man, you look delicious. I'm going to have to take you home with me." He put the fish in a water filled bucket and cast out into the sea again, looking for any buddies of the red snapper that might be around.

* * *

Terence stared down at the castle from the roof of the tallest tower. No one as of yet wanted to return to Old Castle Town, at least not until the queen decided to return to the old castle herself. He knew that the story was likewise the same for the humans living in the Goron City and Dragon Roost Mountain. The people would follow the queen, and if she was making no effort to return then logic showed that there must be something wrong with the old castle. "People can be so naïve sometimes."

"Talking to yourself again, Terence?" Calintz took a seat right next to the other knight and scowled at the man. "That is usually the first sign that a man is losing his mind."

"Yes, and white hair is usually a good sign that a man is aging, however you've been in possession of that shocking mass of hair since your birth, so I'm sure nature allows exceptions here and there." He laughed and leaned back against the tower roof, contemplating where he would choose to go when he decided to retire from being a knight. "Have you been home recently, Calintz?"

The white haired knight smirked and leaned backwards onto the roof as well. "No, I haven't. However, I feel that there is no need to. Home is located high in the mountains and the winds around it are quite powerful, the flood waters never affected it."

"At least you're being optimistic about it. Like I always say, negativity never solves anything."

"Oh shut up. I am merely stating a fact." The gentle breeze blew a few leaves up to the tower roof and Calintz caught one of the red leaves by the stem. "Summer is nearly over, and autumn comes quickly. Zeke should finish his quest soon if he wants the weather to hold for his return trip."

"Perhaps he is already on his way back now?" Terence asked, looking over at his companion. "He may even show up some time today."

"I doubt it, Terence. The Enigma has been tracking their progress and they have yet to even reach the castle. Your student appears to be ill, and a soft spoken romance distracts the prince all thanks to a feverish confession done on the girl's part."

For the first time in eighteen years, Calintz saw Terence utterly dumbfounded. Caught completely by surprise, the older knight sat up with such force that he fell off the tower, only to reappear a moment later amid a flash of green light. "Maiya? In love with the prince?" Terence shook his head shamefully, moaning his discomfort of the notion. "How could she allow such a thing to arise in her heart? It must have been Zeke and his sly tongue."

Calintz laughed so hard that confusion broke out in the square down below as people looked around for the source of the sound. "Zeke? I highly doubt he sweet-talked your student into a relationship. He doesn't like anyone from what I can tell, so it's unlikely that the feelings were his own." He grew somber and sighed. "I never even thought Zeke would be capable of affection, and to hear that he has found happiness with someone fills me with confusion."

Both men were equally confused over the situation and could make no reason out of it. "Perhaps it is a trait of his father," Terence said, regarding his friend with a curious gaze. "Such things have been known to happen. I would not doubt that deep down inside, the prince is in possession of a natural ability to woo a girl off her feet if his father was of a like mind."

Calintz scoffed. "It would help if we knew who his father was. However, it would make sense if his father had taken the queen in a similar way. If only we knew who it was, then we could punish him for both hurting Zelda and for causing his son so much grief."

"He-whom-we-have-been-forbidden-to-speak-of could have found the man if he wasn't forced away," Terence mumbled, rising to his feet and preparing to leave the rooftop. "So much good could have been done if one small wrong could have been righted. For someone who on occasion embodied wisdom of the Goddesses, our queen can be such a fool."

"Careful what you say, Terence," Calintz warned, also rising to his feet. "While I share your opinion, it is not one we should bandy about lightly."

"Hai, you are right. I shall follow your example and keep a tighter leash on my tongue." Together they stepped off of the roof top, enjoying the feeling of weightlessness before casting Farore's Wind and disappearing before the ground rose up to meet them.


	15. Chapter 15: Harsh Resolve

Chapter 15: Harsh Resolve

In the early hours of the morning, when dew still coated the grass and sparkled like diamonds in the light of the rising sun, Zeke, Maiya, and Sakura found themselves close to falling asleep in the saddle. They had decided not to stop that night so they could reach the castle quicker, and while Maiya and Sakura had no qualms about sleeping knowing that Zeke would make sure neither fell off, Zeke on the other hand was not permitted to rest while he had the responsibility of keeping his two companions seated. Despite this, he was constantly catching himself nodding off, and once actually fell asleep, waking just in time to catch Maiya before she fell out of the saddle.

While this felt like a curse to the young prince, Zeke found it rather amusing at times when Maiya or Sakura would mumble in their sleep. It was good blackmail for later, and just plain entertaining during the long ride. He was listening to Maiya muttering about how she was hungry for poultry and wanted Zeke to feed it to her like a servant would do for his queen when rain started pouring down harder than Zeke had ever seen before in his life.

Zeke gasped as rain the size of rupees pelted him relentlessly. Dark rain clouds had come in from the north with surprising speed and went completely unnoticed by the prince. The rain was so surprising that he stopped the horses so he could look at the sky, wondering what had brought the clouds to them so quickly. All thoughts of it being a temporary shower were dispelled as he saw the magnitude of the situation in full view. The black clouds were massed for what appeared to be miles, or at least as far as he could see, and they were opening up like floodgates, releasing their contents with a fury that was frightening.

Maiya and Sakura woke up and started groaning their complaints to the dark sky. "Dang it, I was having such a wonderful dream," the girl said, parting her bangs so she could see ahead of her. With the sun hidden behind the clouds, darkness had covered their part of the field and made it near impossible to see anything ahead of them. It was only by luck that she noticed a small cluster of four or five trees ahead of them. "Zeke, look. Those trees should provide some protection from this rain."

"I see them." He angled the horses towards the trees and cursed their rotten luck. "We're more than halfway to the castle according to the map, yet the sky chooses right now to spit on us. I think the Goddesses have something against us."

"That is silly," Sakura said exasperatedly from inside a saddlebag she had flown into to avoid the rain. "Why would the Goddesses even take the time to notice you two when there are so many other people in the world that are much more interesting?"

Both humans glared at the spot where Sakura was hiding and started to list off ways they could get back at the fairy in order to keep their minds off of the rain. When they reached the trees they were happy to see that the intertwined branches created an impenetrable cover from the rain and gladly took refuge under the thickly crossed boughs of the trees.

Maiya quickly retrieved a blanket from her saddle and wrapped it around herself, berating the weather for its untimely change. "At this rate I'm never going to get better."

"Well then you'll be glad to hear that we're staying at the castle until you're well enough to travel again," Zeke said as he leaned against a tree and closed his eyes, muttering under his breath about how they should have been at the castle by this time. It was becoming difficult to stay awake with the light of the sun gone, and he slowly felt his mind give away.

"Zeke, are you okay?" Maiya asked, rushing forward to check his temperature to see if he had caught what she had.

He took her hand as it neared his forehead and clutched it to him. "I'm fine, Maiya. I'm just really tired. If you'll remember, we kept traveling through the night so we could cover more ground." He slumped to the base of the tree he was leaning against and sighed.

Maiya sat next to him and shared her blanket with him, saying, "It'll be warmer if we huddle together. Get your rest and we can continue later."

"Now that is a good idea," Sakura said, flying over to take advantage of the circumstances. When the three of them were situated, the fairy shared with them that she had a wonderful dream about flying through the clouds in the sky as a great fairy. "I was the most beautiful fairy in the world," she stated happily, describing how she was tall and had magnificent wings like an angel's that were as white as summer clouds. "It was heavenly."

Zeke smiled and said, "I have no doubt that some day you will be the queen of fairies, Sakura."

"What was your dream about, Maiya?" Sakura asked, staring up at the pink haired girl. "You said that you were having a wonderful dream before it started raining."

If her face had not been red already from having a fever, Zeke was sure that it would have flushed to a color similar to her eyes. Having heard a great amount from her mumbling, he himself felt slightly uncomfortable with the subject being brought up.

"It was…about making Zeke feed me food," she said quickly, looking away from her two companions. "Now I think I speak for all of us when I say that we're tired and we should all get some rest while the rain is keeping us here."

Sakura seemed disappointed by this and scowled. "That does not sound like that great of a dream unless you forced him into submission by beating him in the head with a club." Curling up in the blankets, her snores could be heard not long after her comment.

"You should follow her example, Zeke," Maiya suggested, giving him a quick glance. She was surprised, and secretly elated, when he leaned into her, resting his head on her shoulder.

"Liars never prosper, remember?" he murmured. "I heard you mumbling about your dream in your sleep, and I don't think I minded it too much. Sounded rather appealing." Opening an eye so he could look at Maiya, he said, "Don't be embarrassed. I've got some good dirt on Sakura we can take advantage of later." Any thing that Maiya might have done after that went unnoticed by Zeke for he fell into a peaceful sleep that could not be disturbed.

"Still raining, huh?" Zeke stared out at the soaked field angrily, feeling that they could reach the castle if it would just stop raining. Thunder boomed in the distance and a flash of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the entire field with its treacherous light. "It doesn't look like we're going anywhere until this storm is over," he mumbled, looking over at Maiya. "What are you doing?"

Maiya was saddling her horse and preparing to leave. "I'm not waiting for this rain to stop. You need to get to the castle so you can finish this mission." She leaned against her horse tiredly, shaking her head to clear her head. "I'm not well as you can plainly see, and I don't think I'm going to last much longer without medical attention. My arm is tingly, my head hurts, and my vision is fuzzy. None of that can be good, so I think you would agree with me when I say that we need to keep moving."

Zeke went to her and offered his support. "If you go on your own you're going to get worse. Just hold on and I'll help you." Maiya pushed him away and climbed onto her horse, earning an incredulous stare from the prince.

"I'm sorry Zeke, but I need to go. However I won't be going to the castle with you."

"What are you talking about?" He reached up and took a hold of the reigns to keep her from leaving. "Come on, quit being ridiculous. We're going to the castle so you can rest indoors. If you go back now you'll never reach New Castle Town."

Maiya jerked the reigns out of his hands and shook her head. "I can't stay here with you, Zeke. I'm too confused and I have to keep my future in mind."

"Does this have anything to do with your infatuation with me?"

The shock written all over her face was unmistakable, and her confusion was almost unbearable. "How do you know about that?"

"The other night when you first became ill you confessed your feelings for me in a feverish rant, but that's not important right now." Reaching up to pull her out of her saddle, Zeke recoiled when Maiya drew a belt knife and slashed at his hands.

"Regardless, you must see that such a thing can't work between us, so it is imperative that I leave now before anything regrettable can happen." Before Zeke could do anything else, she gigged her horse into a trot and started going back the way they had come.

"This is madness, Maiya!" Zeke threw his saddle up onto his horse and buckled the stirrups.

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked, floating above Zeke's horse.

"I'm going after her. It's dangerous out there and she's going to get hurt." He belted on his sword and threw a cloak over his shoulders to protect him from the rain. "I can't let her leave."

"But she does not want you to go after her."

Zeke looked up at his fairy as he climbed onto his horse. "Some times you have to ignore what people want to do what's good for them. Now get in the saddlebag so I don't lose you." He waited for the fairy to do as she was told before he kicked his horse into a run. It reared up on its hind legs and let loose a horrible screech before rushing forward with breakneck speed.

Judging by how far ahead Maiya was, Zeke assumed that she quickened her horses pace as soon as she was out of sight. He would have a hard time catching up to her unless she became too dizzy to stay on her horse, which under the circumstances would be a blessing for the prince. With her condition unpredictable, Zeke wondered just how long she would stay conscious before she overstretched herself.

Only one thing pervaded his mind, and it was the thought that he had to reach Maiya before the fever did. As he started to catch up to her, it was apparent that her condition was only getting worse. Though he had to strain his eyes to their limit to do so, he could see that Maiya was slouched in her saddle with her head down, her posture too relaxed for her to be completely conscious.

When she fell off her horse, Zeke jumped off of his horse and ran to help her, but she was not completely cataleptic for she drunkenly stumbled to her feet and drew her sword. Turning to face Zeke, she swung her blade with deadly precision and nearly sunk the steel in his side. "Stay away from me! It's for the best that we part now!"

Zeke took a few steps back to stay out of striking range and tried his hardest not to draw his own sword. "Maiya, please, just think about what you're doing. You're sick and not getting better. Just come with me and I'll make sure you are taken care of." Taking a chance, he stepped forward slowly, ready to jump back in case Maiya took another swing at him. "What changed in your mind? When you confessed your feelings for me, you appeared to be the happiest person in the world just because you were with me."

Maiya grimaced and looked away from him, clenching her fist tightly. "Those dreams are both stupid and foolish. I should be thinking about furthering my life as a soldier instead of entertaining girlish dreams of courting the prince. My father would beat me, and my mother would deny me my inheritance, and everything I worked so hard to gain would be stripped away from me. How can I love someone who is probably incapable of loving anyone other than himself?"

"How can you say that?" Zeke asked, feeling more hurt by her words than he ever had at the lash of his mother's tongue. "I grew up knowing nothing but hatred. How can I love myself when I was raised to believe I was worth nothing but trouble?" Taking another slow step towards Maiya, he said, "All I ever wanted was for someone to tell me that I am worth more than dirt and that I am a strong and wise young man who is fit to carry on his mother's legacy." A sword flashed inches from his face and he was forced to retreat.

Rage burned in Maiya's eyes, and it was clear that his words were doing nothing to relieve her mind. "How would it look if the prince of Hyrule found interest in a mere farm girl like myself?"

"It would be criticized, but that's nothing I haven't already endured! Take a moment to remember who I am. I'm the bastard son of the queen. For all my life people have been criticizing me for being born. How do you think that feels? To know that you were never wanted by anyone, not even your own parents? My father left before I was even born, and my mother only kept me because she wants to make sure I don't disgrace her name any more than I already have.

"I have been denied everything, the crown, an inheritance, even a normal life has been torn away from me. My needs are placed behind everyone else's, and by the time it's my turn to discuss them I'm brushed away because no one has the energy to listen to me." Hot tears burned his cheeks as they fell down his face, but he ignored them. "Look me in the eyes and tell me you have it worse than I do, Maiya. Even the poorest man in New Castle Town laughs at my pathetic existence. I have been placed in a class below death itself, and I hate every moment of it."

"See? Even now you can't stop talking about yourself and how bad you have it!" Maiya countered, screaming at the top of her lungs. "So you have it worse than everyone else in Hyrule, so what? At least you have a place that you can call home, at least you have clothes to put on your back, and at least you're a good-looking boy. Why can't you look at the few things you have that are good and be grateful?"

The prince stared at Maiya, unable to breathe. Perhaps it was that she had named a few things that were actually good, or maybe it was that her tone was lined with concern, but something about her words pierced through Zeke with such intensity that it rendered him senseless.

"Everything just has to be about you! Maybe you should open your eyes, and I know you can because I've seen you sympathize with people who have seen devastation before, and start to observe the world around you!" Maiya threw her sword down and stuck it in the ground, striding up to Zeke and punching him in the face. "I understand that my affection for you must be appealing, but stop thinking about what you want and start considering what would be best for us. I need to complete my training as a soldier so that I can be of use for our country and maybe after that I'll be able to retire in peace. You should be thinking about what the people would approve of so that you can end all the torment they put you through. Marry someone who is high up in social status and improve the way your people see you." She spun around and retrieved her sword in case Zeke tried to approach her again.

Shaking off the stars in his vision, Zeke stood to his feet and again reached for Maiya. "That doesn't change the fact that you're ill!" He drew his sword and stopped the oncoming blade before it could harm him. "You're coming to that castle with me even if I have to drag you by your hair with you kicking and screaming. You won't make it back to New Castle Town if you go alone!"

Maiya prevented him from opening his mouth by sending a barrage of slashes at him, making him concentrate on blocking the hits so he could not think of any words to speak. "Zeke, I love you, and I can't forget that, but the longer I'm in your presence the more I want to be with you and I know that I can't let that happen. If I go to that castle with you, I'm going to end up doing something I'm going to regret. I want to be with you more than anything, but it just can't happen."

While her attempt to silence Zeke was working, it also worked the other way around when he started getting the upper hand. With an upward slash he broke through the volley of strikes and started to unleash an onslaught of unpredictable slashes on Maiya. "None of that matters right now! If you died because you were unwell I would be blamed for negligence and I would probably be punished for it. Just be cooperative and I'll stay out of your way when you're back to full health."

Maiya side stepped a downward slash and kneed Zeke in the gut, slashing at his torso to leave a bad enough gash that would leave him incapable of fighting. However she slipped and she ended up striking him with the flat of the blade instead of the edge. In order to keep the high ground, she jumped on his back and attempted to choke him out by slipping her arm around his neck and tightening her hold on it to restrict his breathing. "Oh now my feelings don't mean anything? You're such a jerk! If it wasn't my mission to keep you safe I would kill you right now!"

Zeke's world was becoming fuzzy, and he could feel his brain throbbing inside of his head along with the sound of his heart beating so loudly that he could have sworn it was right next to his ears. One other thing that he could feel though was the heat from Maiya's face. Her fever had escalated so much that he could feel it on his skin and he knew what ailment Maiya suffered from: she was delirious. With that thought in mind, he could not allow her to win this fight. Even though she was more skilled with a blade, and obviously still capable of hurting him despite her condition, he had to win for her sake.

Taking hold of her legs, Zeke jumped up and fell backwards so he landed on top of Maiya, knocking the wind out of her. She loosened her grip on his neck and he rolled away from her, gasping for air. "Maiya, I beg you. Let's stop this nonsense and head for cover from this blasted rain."

Maiya rose to her feet, and Zeke was sure that he could see a haze around her body from her fever coming in contact with the cold air around her. "Why, so you can molest me? You may sound like you care, but I don't believe it! No one can develop real feelings for someone in the course of a mere week." She dashed towards him, the tip of her blade slicing through the grass as it came up with the intention of leaving a gash on Zeke's chest.

Zeke batted the sword away and swept Maiya's feet out from underneath her with a well-aimed kick. As he approached her to pin her to the ground, and in doing so end her assault on him, Maiya slashed at him, using her momentum to stand up again.

They stared into each other's eyes, one set concerned and the other enraged. Everything ceased to exist for the two combatants. The rain, though pouring down upon them, no longer felt as if it was pelting them. Their ears became deaf to even the boom of thunder, and their eyes could no longer see the lightning that streaked across the sky.

Looking into Maiya's scarlet eyes, Zeke knew that the upcoming clash would be the last, and he also knew that if he was not careful that he would get hurt, and most likely die. Technical fighting would do him no good here, and preset attack rhythms would be foreseen and quickly countered to deadly affect. His best bet would be to fight the way he thought would be comfortable, flowing from each strike smoothly and instinctively instead of relying on his mind to think of everything. Maiya had reached a degree of mindlessness that was making her incapable of coherent thought, and her fighting was becoming increasingly more dangerous to not only Zeke but herself as well.

Taking a deep breath, Zeke relaxed his mind, knowing that if he strained to see the next attack, he would only put himself in jeopardy. A calm mind would best a struggling mind no matter how skilled they were. Without taking his eyes off of Maiya, he started to relax the muscles in his arms and legs, knowing that if they remained tense they would be slow to react. He had to obtain a complete state of aloofness, and as he did, everything started to become real again.

The rain was once again bouncing off of his soaked body and running down his face. The thunder rattled his bones, and the lightning fiercely forked, causing dark clouds to remain in his vision long after it had disappeared.

"Maiya," he said softly, but loud enough to be heard. Her eyes flickered with flames that accented her already red eyes at the sound of her name. "I'm not going to try to talk you out of this any more. With this next assault, I am going to disarm you, and then I am going to force you into submission. After that, you _will_ be coming to the castle with me."

"Such bold words for a cowardly prince," Maiya hissed, twirling her sword threateningly.

They waited for the next flash of lightning, and then it started. Zeke kicked off the ground as hard as he could and jumped forward. Maiya slid in the mud, unprepared to have Zeke strike her from the air. She quickly sidestepped and spun in a circle, knocking Zeke aside. He recovered quickly, rolling onto his feet, and sprang an assault that sent slashes in sporadic and unpredictable patterns. Maiya had to use all of her mind power to defend against the opposing sword, angrily parrying and sending counter strikes that seemed to do nothing to give her the upper hand. From high to low, from side to side, Zeke's blade flashed from every direction and sent chills of fear down her spine.

As she continued to guard herself from the onslaught, her fever peaked and clouded her vision, making her see multiple blades being thrown at her. Fighting back against her own ailment, she struggled to see through the illusion and took a step back as she was being overwhelmed. In order to escape Zeke's sword and regroup, she did a back handspring, hoping it would have the same affect as the last time she had done it to avoid Zeke.

Seeing the maneuver, Zeke was able to move just in time to prevent having a foot come in contact with his chin and took advantage of Maiya's vulnerability by catching one of her feet and yanking on it, causing her to land on her back instead of her hands and then her feet. With a strong kick, Maiya managed to knock Zeke off balance and stood to her feet, lunging at him and thrusting her sword at him.

He could see the blade coming, but there was nothing he could do to stop it that would not hurt Maiya in the process. _This is the sacrifice I make for you_. The tip of the blade sliced through his chain mail, and then an explosion of pain erupted in his abdomen and through his back as he felt the steel slide through him until the hilt of the sword stopped at his gut.

Their eyes met and Zeke took hold of her hands, still clutching the handle of her sword. With a surprisingly calm voice, Zeke said to Maiya, "Are you ready to come to the castle with me?"

Maiya screamed a string of curses out of frustration and struck Zeke across the face, only to have him look down at her with his calm eyes. "What is _wrong_ with you? You have a sword inside of you!" She twisted her sword in Zeke's middle, causing him to fall to his knees, gasping in agony. "I'm done with you! Just leave this world and never bother me again!"

Taking a few steps back, she drew her long belt knife and raised it above her head so she could plunge it into his heart. Dizziness and pain behind her eyes caused her to stop. Swaying dangerously, she fell forward and into Zeke's lap where he took her into his arms and supported her despite the sword that pained him. "Maiya, are you okay?"

Reaching up with her free hand, she gently touched his face and started to cry. "Why won't you die? You have a freaking sword inside of you, yet you stare at me with those relaxed eyes like it's no big deal."

Zeke took a painful breath and tried to smile. "I just want to take care of you, Maiya. You must know how bad your fever has become. Come with me and I'll look after you until you are better."

"Zeke…" Maiya gripped his neck and pulled herself up to him, pressing her lips to his. She could feel his blood soaking both of their tunics, warm and sticky compared to the chill of the slick rain. It was on her hands, and all over her front, and she cried harder out of regret. Pulling away from the kiss, she cupped his face with her hands and sobbed. "I'm so sorry. Please, forgive me."

With a smile, Zeke said, "I forgive you, but I have to admit that this is the single most painful thing I've ever had happen to me." He moaned and fell to his side, growing faint and cold. "I don't know if I'll be able to survive this."

Maiya screamed out of frustration and tried to talk Zeke through it. "Stay with me, Zeke. It'll be okay. Just hang on for a little while longer and I'll take care of everything. Come on, my love. You can pull through this." Maiya quickly removed her sword from Zeke and ripped off his tunic to use as a bandage. It was too short to wrap around him, so she proceeded to take off her own to tie them together and maximize their usefulness. As she was trying to tie the makeshift bandage around Zeke's wounds, her head split with unbearable pain, causing her to lose consciousness in the middle of taking care of her companion's injury.


	16. Chapter 16: Apologies

Chapter 16: Apologies

Maiya woke up in a panic, screaming for Zeke. When no answer came, she became scared and looked around quickly, realizing that she was no longer out in Hyrule Field. She found herself in an incredibly large bed with dark blue curtains drawn around it. Slowly crawling out of the bed, she looked around the room she was in, wondering where she was. Though the owner of the room had tried to fill the room, it still looked quite barren. Along the walls were a few dressers, some cabinets with delicate looking figurines, and a couple of portraits of what must have been pictographs.

Examining one of these portraits, Maiya gasped as she recognized her teacher, Sir Terence, among a group of people. She also saw Queen Zelda, King Roland, Sir Reeve, Sir Fandarel, and a child that possessed a striking resemblance to the stunning Sir Calintz. All of the people she recognized were much younger in the portrait than she had ever seen them in life, which brought about more confusion. Another portrait depicted the queen with a man that she recognized, but could not put a name to his face. They were holding each other lovingly, smiling with such happiness that it made Maiya feel blissful for them.

Walking around the room, Maiya found a series of pictographs that depicted a small girl with blonde hair and blue eyes that looked like Faye, the current princess, and decided that this room must have once been the queen's.

Maiya saw a mirror on the other side of the room and went to it faster than she intended, almost knocking it over. She took in her appearance sadly. Though she was wearing a nice blue nightgown, she had to admit that she looked horrible. Her arms were covered in bruises and her face was pale with smudges all over it. Running a hand through her hair, she realized that someone must have washed her while she was unconscious. This brought on a wave of embarrassment for she could not begin to imagine who would have done it.

Sakura flashed in her mind, but she quickly brushed it aside. While the fairy may have been able to remove her pants, it was unlikely that the small being had managed to drag her into a bath and washed her without either of them drowning. The second possibility was Zeke, but that seemed even less likely due to the fact that he had been run through with a sword and that his personality would have deemed the activity inappropriate and invasive of her privacy.

The door opened and a beautiful woman with curly black hair and dark glasses over her eyes walked in with a tray of food. "I see you are awake. I've brought food for you, but first I'd like to see how you're doing. My friend and I were quite worried when we discovered you had a fever, and being out in the cold rain probably made it worse. Just take a seat over there and I'll administer my "healing" touch."

Maiya did as she was told and let out a sigh of relief. _This must be the person who bathed me._ While the strange woman checked Maiya's condition, she examined this person curiously. She was tall for a woman, but not too tall. It seemed that she was the perfect size for her features and figure. "By what name do you go by, ma'am?"

The woman laughed, a melodic laugh, and tapped under Maiya's kneecap, causing her leg to jump involuntarily. "That's the first time anyone has called me ma'am," she said with a smile, revealing a single fang on the right side of her mouth. "My name is Noèlle. What is yours?"

"I'm Maiya."

"Such a pretty name for a pretty girl. Yet, I detect a toughness behind it that is befitting, for you appear to be a warrior. However, I must ask. Are you the one who ran a sword through the prince?"

Maiya stood up and almost knocked Noèlle over. "Zeke! Is he all right? Please don't tell me he's dead." She was pushed back down and Noèlle took a seat next to her, gesturing towards the tray of food on the table in front of them.

"You can go see him after you've eaten something," Noèlle said calmly, which only seemed to make Maiya more afraid of what might have happened to Zeke. "He's okay with the exception of having a hole in him. You're both lucky that my friend found you when he did, or neither of you would have lived to today." She smoothed a couple wrinkles in her dark green dress and smiled. "I, for one, have to thank you for your mishap. This is the first time I've been away from my home in many, many years."

Maiya took a fork and a plate of food and started eating, asking, "How many years exactly?"

Noèlle gave the girl a wink. "I could tell you, but I doubt you'd believe me."

Being too hungry to care about much else, Maiya accepted the statement lightly. The door opened again, and this time a person dressed in a black cloak that covered his entire body entered. "Noèlle, it's time for you to return to Ondine. Our friend only gave you a limited amount of time to be away from home, and I have to escort you back."

Noèlle scowled and rose to her feet. "You sure I can't stay for just a little while longer?"

"I'm afraid not. You shouldn't abuse this privilege if you want to be granted more in the future."

"That's true," she mumbled, walking over to the cloaked man. "It was nice meeting you Maiya. Be sure to finish eating, and if you want you can take a bath in the washroom just over there. I wasn't really worried about cleaning you thoroughly since I just wanted to get you in a bed, so you might want to improve on my work."

The cloaked man turned his hood towards Maiya and he made a "hmm" noise in his throat. "Zeke is in a room on the first floor in the east wing of the castle. You should visit him after you've done everything Noèlle has instructed you to do. There are a few dresses in the closet, but if you'd prefer a more soldier like outfit, there is an outfit under the bed that consists of pants and a tunic. Don't leave the castle. I'll be back before nightfall."

Noèlle smiled and linked her arm with the cloaked man's. "You should come by my city some time. I like having company."

"Ready to go, Noèlle?"

"As ready as I can be. Off to Ondine we-a-go."

Both the man and Noèlle disappeared in a flash of light that Maiya knew was Farore's Wind. Wanting to see Zeke, Maiya quickly finished the meal and ran to the washroom. She almost cried out of joy when she saw that the washroom had pipes. Only once had she been able to take advantage of a bath in a castle, and she had been unsure if the old castle would have the same type of baths as the new one. Having pipes running to a hot spring was almost too much to ask for, but her need to see the prince was dire and she snapped out of her revelry.

******

It turned out that she and the queen had the same measurements for her clothes all fit her perfectly, although Maiya had a bit more leg than Zelda did. She had been tempted to put on the boyish outfit, but her feminine side won over and she contented herself with a simple dress that was purple on top with a white skirt that was just long enough to fall to her feet. Spinning in the mirror, she played with her hair for a little while trying to figure out what would be most suitable for a dress. Even though it was the style she had been using for the last few years, the ponytail looked the best and she decided that it did not really matter how she looked.

Slipping on a pair of sandals to protect her feet from the cold stone floor, she walked out of the room and hoped that she would be able to find her way. In order to give light to the corridors where no windows let in light, hanging chandeliers had been lit, guiding Maiya down two floors and into the east wing where she hoped Zeke would be sitting in bed waiting for her to come by so that he could give her a big smile and say that he was as good as new.

The chandeliers ended and Maiya turned to the door that she was standing by. A stone plaque had been hung above the door to tell people whose room it was. The Room of Sir Link: Leader of the Crimson Tears. Maiya wondered why Zeke had been placed here when he could have been placed in a room closer to the one she was in, but realized that her thoughts were just keeping her from entering the room. Even though his last words to her had been that he forgave her, she still felt guilty and did not know if she could even face him after all she had done to him.

Unknowingly, she had admitted her feelings for him and made him hopeful for his future, but then she angrily took that away from him and proceeded to fight him when he was just trying to help her. Then she hurt him more than anyone else ever had when she put a sword in him. _I called him selfish when he was really just thinking about me._

Straightening her back and taking a deep breath, she opened the door and entered the room. "Zeke? It's Maiya." She found the prince sitting in bed, propped up by pillows, and arguing with Sakura.

"For the last time, I'm not going to ask him to heal around the wound so that I'll have a hole in my stomach," Zeke said angrily, clenching his fists.

"But it would be neat. How many humans have holes in them? Not very many I would bet." The fairy was flying just out of reach, and Maiya could tell that this was an argument that had been going on for a while now.

Zeke turned to see Maiya and his face lit up. "You're okay."

She quickly closed the distance between them and pulled up a chair so she could sit next to him. "Are _you_ okay?"

"He is fine. He is just being a big baby," Sakura proclaimed, taking a seat on Maiya's shoulder.

"Sakura, you're not any safer on Maiya's shoulder," Zeke said. "I may not be able to reach you, but if I tell her to grab you I'm pretty sure she will." Maiya had taken his hand in both of hers and he gently squeezed hers. "I'm fine, Maiya. Enigma fixed all of my damaged innards and that stopped a lot of the bleeding. He can't heal me completely yet because he needs to rest and regain his strength again, but when he's done I'll be as good as new. Although I've asked him if he can leave a scar behind because no one would believe I got run through with a sword if I didn't have proof."

Maiya started to cry and leaned forward to embrace Zeke. "I'm so sorry, Zeke."

He winced, but quickly put his smile back on, patting Maiya's back. "It's okay. I forgive you, Maiya. I'm just glad that you're feeling better." He could feel her tears running down his neck and waited for her to get it out of her system. "I must say, that was a great spar, but next time let's do it with sticks and not swords."

Maiya laughed, her sobs dying away. "I like that idea." After Zeke assured her that it was alright, she climbed onto the bed with him and they sat together. "So this was Sir Link's room, huh?" The room definitely had a manly aura to it with how the furniture was arranged and just by what type of items were on the dressers and desks.

"Yeah. He came from a small village, which would explain why he has odd stuff in here." A cold stare from Maiya made him add, "There's nothing wrong with that, it's just that he collected a lot of things that he liked. Such as this shiny rock lookin' thing he keeps on his nightstand. I think it might be a piece of obsidian, but I could be wrong."

Maiya took a pictograph off of the nightstand and looked at it curiously. "What do you make of this?" The picture was of the man she saw in the portrait in the queen's room, and turned out to be Sir Link, Queen Zelda, and Noèlle. Link was standing in between the two girls while they were both kissing his cheeks, and he did not seem too pleased about it.

Zeke looked at it and shrugged, an action that he was pleased to discover did not cause him pain. "When the Crimson Tears were first formed, my mom and Link spent a lot of time together, going all over the place. Mom still has a couple pictographs from that time sitting on her desk at home, and I often wonder how close they were."

"Maybe Sir Link is your father?" Maiya laughed, holding the picture so she could look at Link and Zeke together.

He plucked the pictograph from her fingers and placed it back on the nightstand. "It's not possible."

"Why not?"

"Because around the time I was conceived, Link was off on a mission and my mom was here. I found the mission record to prove to myself that it wasn't true. Besides, he and I don't look anything alike." This seemed to sadden him greatly, and Maiya felt bad for bringing it up.

"What will you do if your father ever shows up?" she asked quietly, hoping that this would not offend him.

The thought had occurred to the prince multiple times, and he already had an answer. "First I'll ask him why he left, and then I'm going to break his nose." He emphasized this by pretending to punch someone. "Hopefully mom won't get mad at me for doing it."

"I would think she'd be mad that you didn't let her do it first," Maiya commented. "After all, he _is_ the one who got her pregnant and started all of this trouble for the both of you. I think you would be pretty united in beating the snot out of him, and judging by this picture, I'm sure Sir Link would give the guy a piece of his mind as well."

"Along with every member of the Crimson Tears." Zeke smiled down at Maiya, bringing on a questioning glance from the girl. "You look nice."

Even though it had been her intention to appeal to him, the comment still slightly bothered her. "Oh shut up."

"I'm serious. That dress looks great on you. Maybe you should keep it."

If he had not been hurt already, Maiya might have hit him, but inside she was smiling and was grateful for the comment. "Sakura, you're being rather quiet. What's on your mind?"

The fairy yawned and said, "I am tired and hungry. Besides, this moment is yours to have. I will not interrupt it for fear that you will stick me in a jar."

Maiya frowned and said, "This is your moment too. We're a family, remember?" She looked up at Zeke and asked him if he had anything to do with the fairy's silence, but he denied the notion.

The door opened and the cloaked man walked into the room with a tray of food. "How do you feel, Zeke?"

"I feel like someone put a sword in me."

"Fair enough." Enigma placed the tray down on a table and regarded Maiya, but no one could discern what kind of expression he had on his face. "You clean up nice." Maiya thanked him, but he ignored it. "Zeke, I can heal your wound by accelerating your natural healing process, which will take less energy and it will leave a scar like you asked, however you will still feel a small amount of pain. Other methods that completely heal the wound would be virtually painless, but you insist on having a scar so there's nothing else I can do."

"Just hurry up and do it," Zeke mumbled. "These bandages make my skin itch."

"I can't right now. I'm still tired. You'll have to wait for a little while longer." Enigma took a seat and propped his feet up on a short table. "If either of you tries to take off my hood and or mask I'll be forced to put you through excruciating pain until you forget my face."

"If you weren't so mysterious we wouldn't want to know who you are," Maiya scowled. On several occasions she had seen Sir Terence and others speaking with the man who called himself the Enigma, and she had always wanted to know who it was under the mask. "Besides, if you have any loyalty to your country, you would take off your hood if Zeke ordered you to."

Zeke raised his hand and gave Maiya a swift swat to the back of the head. "Enigma has a right to his privacy." Turning to the man, he asked, "How did you find us so fast?"

"I've been tracking your progress since you left. Don't worry, I was doing it only to make sure you made it here safely. Your mother had nothing to do with it." He crossed his arms and his hood bent forward slightly. "If it wasn't for that charm around your neck, I don't think that I would have been able to save you, and then I would have been forced to kill Maiya out of _loyalty_ for my country."

"Charm? You mean this necklace?" He pulled the necklace out of his shirt and held it up, wondering if Enigma could even see it.

"That's the one. It has a special spell placed on it that dulls pain and holds back as much bleeding as it can, however the spell has diminished over the years and it gave only a small amount of comfort." He silenced another one of Zeke's questions by holding up his hand. "Leave me be for now. With Maiya feeling better, I'm sure she can offer you support so you two can explore the castle. You're the first ones to see it in nearly eighteen years, so go study up on your heritage."

Maiya smiled at the idea and started to help Zeke out of the bed before he even considered if he wanted to go anywhere at the moment. "Come on, Zeke. Let's go explore the castle. It'll be fun."

"But I still have a hole in me," Zeke protested, gasping in pain as Maiya pulled him off of the bed. "I too want to see the castle, but I'm still severely wounded. Besides, it could be dangerous." He eyed Enigma with a flat stare, saying, "Unless you do some healing right now, I'm not going anywhere."

Enigma swiped his hand in the air and a blue light shimmered underneath Zeke's shirt. "You should be able to walk around now, but I would suggest relying on girly here to offer as much support as she can spare. I'll attend to your wounds after I've had a rest, and only when I'm feeling more like myself will I do anything. Now get going, I'm sick of the two of you."

Maiya threw one of Zeke's arms around her shoulders and helped him out the door, closing it behind them. "He's not the most pleasant person in Hyrule, is he?"

"No he's not," Zeke agreed. "However, I can't begin to imagine what made him to be like that."

Walking down the corridors, Zeke and Maiya would stop every now and then to examine a portrait or a tapestry, often discussing what made the people or events important enough to be depicted with paint or thread. Zeke surprised Maiya with his knowledge of many of the pieces they came across. Despite never living in the old castle, Zeke had been taught enough in the new one to know a lot about the historical images they observed.

"This portrait is almost as old as the country is," Zeke said, pointing at a painting depicting a man and a woman dressed in armor, holding each other's hands in a chapel. "When my ancestor Zephyr united Hyrule under one banner she organized the first group of knights to protect her from assassination. Hyrule is one of the best places in the world when it comes to farmland and such, so it had gained the attention of the bordering countries of Nippon, Ardor, and Basilik. While Basilik was too weak to attack us, Nippon and Ardor wanted to expand their territories to include Hyrule, so, one day, Nippon spies had been captured and they said that war was coming. Lucky for us the knights had done enough damage to the enemy's supply lines and things of that nature that they were weakened significantly and a small battle was the deciding factor. Afterwards, these two knights ran to the chapel and pleaded with the cleric to marry them. Still dressed in their blood stained armor, they were joined in holy matrimony."

"Now that's what I call true love," Maiya murmured, frowning. "Although, I think I would have at least waited long enough to get a proper dress. I want to look beautiful at my wedding."

"I couldn't agree more."

Half dragging Zeke behind her, Maiya approached another painting a few paces down from the first. "What about this one? The plaque says Bloody Sunrise."

The prince studied the painting, going through his memories to locate it in his schooling. "The Bloody Sunrise is a representation of war. The artist wanted to show us that even a sunrise can be tainted by blood. If you look closely you can see a knight dressed in armor crying in the shadows."

"Why does he cry?"

"They say that taking the lives of others tears your soul apart. He weeps because he has taken so many lives, and it has left him empty and without a soul."

Maiya leaned into Zeke, whispering, "How awful." She gazed at the portrait sadly, wondering what would have become of her personality if she had succeeded in killing Zeke. Unable to face the thought, she turned and embraced Zeke tightly. "I feel like that and I didn't even kill you."

Returning the hug gently so as not to aggravate his wound, he asked, "Have you reconsidered anything?"

"What do you mean?"

"Have you forgotten what that fight was about?"

Maiya shook her head. "I was trying to protect my heart from disappointment." She stared up into his eyes with a strong gaze and said, "I stand by what I said about you courting me. Being a soldier, I don't have much free time, and what free time I do have is usually spent in bed."

"I'll come down to the training grounds to spar with you everyday if that's what I have to do to get time with you," Zeke declared.

A pretty smile graced Maiya's lips. "Sir Terence might get suspicious. I've thought about it for months now, and I'm not sure who would be more dangerous when it comes to boys and me, Terence, or my father."

"I'm their superior, I could order them to relent."

"I appreciate that, but I don't think it will be necessary." She smiled up at Zeke and, standing on her tiptoes, kissed the tip of his nose. "If you're willing to make an effort, then I will as well. If I have to, I'll resign from the military and get another job. Master Archivist Idarolan owes me a few favors, so I have no doubt that I could get my Journeywoman's knot back. Then, you can request scrolls to be delivered and I would conveniently "get lost" on my way back."

"But you've got a good thing going with the academy. Don't give that up for my sake." Zeke gripped her arms to shake some sense into her, but realized a bit to late that Maiya had not yet healed from their first spar in the rain. A thin red line appeared on the white bandage, and Maiya winced, drawing away from the prince.

"On second thought, you strike me as an abusive person, so I think I'll take my chances with finding someone else," she said with a wink.

"I am not. That was an accident." Pulling her back towards him, he apologized as convincingly as he could. "I'm really sorry."

Pretending to be hurt worse than she really was, Maiya linked her arm with his and got them moving down the corridor again. "I'll believe you this time, but if it happens again I'll be sure to aim for your heart next time I put a sword through you."

*******

"Hold still, Zeke. This won't work if you move a lot." Enigma muttered an incantation into his hand, causing it to glow with blue light. Placing his hand above the wound on Zeke's abdomen, he started mumbling so fast that his words became unintelligible.

Zeke clenched his teeth, suppressing the urge to howl in pain. The feeling of his skin regenerating was far from pleasant, and he started to regret asking for this method of healing. He felt Maiya take his hand in hers and she gave him a smile that said it was going to be okay.

Enigma's chanting slowly ended and he peered down at the new skin critically. He poked Zeke where the wound had been and looked at the prince for a reaction. Zeke just stared at him with narrowed eyes. "It would appear that you're healed. My advice to you would be to get some rest. I'll be back later with food for the both of you." He left the room and closed the door behind him. Maiya and Zeke saw a flash of green light under the door and knew that the man was gone from the castle entirely.

Zeke tested his new skin curiously, running his fingers over the scar to assure himself that he no longer had a hole in him. "Incredible."

"Where's Sakura?" Maiya asked.

"She's playing in the garden, why?"

Maiya sat down next to him on the bed and leaned in so her face was mere inches from his. "Remember what I said about not doing something I would regret?"

"Yeah."

"I don't think I care anymore." Wrapping her arms around the prince, Maiya kissed Zeke with such passion that they fell to their sides.

* * *

Ciel stared at Lon Lon Ranch in awe. The Legend of Zelda games had always shown the ranch to be a magnificent place, and the reality she saw was nothing short of splendid. "Chris, are you seeing this?"

"Aye," he answered, standing next to his sister.

"It's wonderful."

"That it is."

She looked down at her brother and sighed. "Do you think we could get used to calling this place home?"

Chris looked up at Ciel and shrugged. "I don't see why we have to. I'm determined to find a way back to our real home, so don't lose hope. Mom's probably worried about us, so be strong and don't give in to misery."

"Right. In the mean time, let's make ourselves useful." Ciel jogged over to Malon as the older woman was locking the paddock and asked her if there was anything she could do.

Malon pointed over to the house and said, "You can help me prepare supper so Kenji can eat something before he rushes off to the castle. If I've learned anything about that boy in the last few days, it's that he has an incredible sense of duty." She regarded Ciel with a dry stare and then looked over to the stables where Kenji was helping Talon with getting the horses situated for the night. "Why don't you go convince him to stay for supper? I'm sure he'll leave if the offer isn't made, and after it is I guess we'll just have to count on him being famished."

Ciel bowed. "Yes ma'am." Hurrying over to the stables, she found Kenji lying on the floor with his arms and legs spread out. "Kenji? Are you okay?"

He looked up at her and smiled. "I'm fine. Just stretching my muscles is all." Standing up, he dusted himself off and picked some grass out of his hair. "What do you want?"

"Malon wants to know if you'll stay for supper," she responded. "It's been a long four days, and I don't know about you but I'm looking forward to having a nice hot meal." She waited for him to answer, hoping he would stay just a little longer. While she had not really hit it off with the Harper, she knew that Chris really enjoyed his company and it was nice seeing her brother around someone that he could joke with and actually get laughter from.

"I don't know, Ciel. Zeke and Maiya could already be on their way back from the castle, and I've got a lot of work ahead of me as it is."

"If you won't stay for the food, then stay for Chris," she pleaded, locking her gaze with his. "Chris really likes being around you, and I think he would like it if you would stay for just a little while longer."

Kenji stared into her eyes for a long moment before he finally agreed to stay. "I'll stay for the evening meal, but after that I'm leaving. I have little time to get to the castle, and if I fail my task because of this, you can bet that I'll be back here to reprimand you."

"You'll do no such thing."

Ciel turned around and found the cloaked man she had met in the town square. "It's you!"

"Enigma," Kenji mumbled. "Still checking up on me?"

"No, this time I'm checking up on Ciel and her brother. However, while you're here I would like to inform you that Zeke and Maiya are at the castle now, but they won't be leaving for a couple days. You'll catch up to them." He turned to go speak with Malon, but turned his gaze back to Kenji in order to say, "Congratulations on your betrothal."

"I should have known you'd hear about that," Kenji said, regarding Ciel with a curious glance. "What did you do to get his attention?"

"I came to Hyrule. Apparently that was enough."


	17. Chapter 17: Twin Blades of Light

Chapter 17: Twin Blades of Light

"Enigma, will you be staying for supper?" Malon asked the cloaked man, a hopeful smile on her face. Though she would not admit it, she was still searching for the man of her dreams and found something she really liked about the mysterious man whose name was as secretive as his demeanor. As the man looked up at the sky, pondering the question, she caught a glimpse of his eyes as the remaining light caught him at just the right angle. They were dull and sad, completely unlike what the woman had imagined.

Pulling out a small stone, Enigma flicked it with his fingers and it loosed a high-pitched laugh that startled anyone close enough to here it. With a creepy voice, the stone said, "The time is 20:15."

Enigma put the timepiece away and his hood focused on Malon. "I have to prepare a meal for the prince and Miss Maiya. I should return soon."

Malon waved this off and said, "Forget that. I'll send some food along with you when we're done eating." She hoped that the proposal would be seen as kind opposed to rude, knowing that she often said things that were taken the wrong way. The way Enigma always hesitated to answer made her worry about what he could possibly be thinking, but he accepted the offer with what she hoped was a smile.

"What, might I ask, will be served this evening?" he asked, brushing some dirt off of his sleeve.

"Nothing too complicated. Just a simple stew and some dried fruit will be all I can put together quickly. Kenji wants to leave as soon as he's eaten, and he seems to be in quite a hurry so I won't spend too much time cooking today." She gave him a seductive smile and said, "If you're lacking in the company department, you can always stay a little longer for some dessert."

Seeing Chris talking to a cow, Enigma wanted to talk to the child for a little while, so he merely laughed his chilling laugh and started walking away. "Only in your dreams, Malon." He strode over to the blue haired boy and leaned against the fence with his arms crossed. "Talking to cows is not usually a comforting thing to see, young sir."

Chris laughed and scratched the cow behind the ears. "This cow has been good company over the last few days. I know that she probably doesn't understand much of what I say, but she responds to my words and I would like to think that she is at least listening." He held out a hand to the cloaked man and introduced himself.

"I know who you are, but a proper introduction is always appreciated," Enigma said, shaking the proffered hand. "My name has been banned from the world, but you may call me Enigma."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Enigma." Chris gave him a quick look over and chuckled. "What are you, some kind of ninja?"

This seemed to amuse the man, for he started to laugh in quite a different way than before. "In a way, yes, but not entirely. Stealth is the only thing that I share with a ninja. When it comes to battle, I prefer to fight in a more traditional way with a long sword, and you can believe me when I say that all stealth is obliterated when I'm forced to draw my blade." Feeling that he could trust the boy with the information, he said, "However, there is a knight that trained under the king who is very much like a ninja. He dresses in a similar fashion, albeit mine looks better. While he normally sticks to the shadows, when he has to fight he draws two wakizashi that are a bit longer than your average belt knife and he fights using magic that creates illusions. If anyone is a ninja, it's him."

Kenji looked over to where Enigma was talking to Chris and murmured, "Normally he doesn't take the time to chat with people. What makes Chris so special?"

Ciel stared at the Harper curiously. "You sure know a lot about this mystery man. How do you know so much about him?"

Returning to carrying supplies into the house, Kenji said, "Enigma used to check in on me at the Archives a lot after I was accepted into the hall. What I know about him comes from observations I made when he was around." He crouched down and lifted an exceptionally heavy crate from the ground. "From what I can tell," he continued, his voice strained from carrying the crate, "he knows just about everyone who is important in Hyrule, and he has enough dirt on people to blackmail them into doing his bidding." Sliding the crate onto a counter top, Kenji took a moment to rest before going out to grab another one.

"Is there anyone you haven't seen in a while?" Ciel asked.

"I only came to New Castle Town five years ago so I don't know very many people," Kenji said. "Why?"

She shrugged and set her burden down on a table. "Though it's a little juvenile, logically this Enigma could be someone you've met before. You know, like someone left and then this man started to come around."

Kenji nodded his approval of the idea, but shot it down by saying, "I'm not as connected as everyone thinks I am, and the people that I _do_ know are either too young, too old, or really uncoordinated. Not one of the men I know really well matches the description of Enigma or comes close to having his abilities."

Ciel was disappointed to hear this. This mysterious man was somehow connected to her coming to Hyrule, and she wanted to know who he really was. It would help if the man knew how she came to this land, and hopefully a way to reverse it. "Does he seem sad to you?"

The question must have been ridiculous because Kenji started to laugh. "No, he doesn't. He's sarcastic and rude."

"Those are strongly associated with PTSD as coping methods."

"PTSD?"

"Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Soldiers get it all the time when something really bad happens and they don't know how to deal with it. I have a cousin in the Army who was diagnosed with it. While he was serving over seas, a group of rebels attacked his base and his best friend died from someone slitting his throat. Before it happened, he was a good natured guy, but now he's the most sarcastic person I know."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's no big deal," Ciel said, heading for the door again. "It's just that Enigma acts the same way as my cousin, and that leads me to believe that something really bad has happened to him in the past and he doesn't know how to cope with it."

"Tell me about it," Malon mumbled as she walked into the house carrying a large cooking pot. "I just offered the man the love of a beautiful woman and he just laughed. A man who never reveals his identity has just got to be lonely."

Kenji smirked and said, "Or maybe you're just not as beautiful as you think you are."

"What was that?" Malon snapped, glaring at the boy dangerously.

"Don't take my word for it," Kenji said calmly, following Ciel out the door. "If I wasn't going to be married I would take you up on your offer myself, but that's just me."

Malon threw a broom at him like a spear and caught him between the shoulder blades. "Hurry up with those crates, worm!"

*****

When dinner was ready to be eaten, Malon called everyone inside with a powerful bellow that startled even the cattle. Ciel was the first one to sit down at the table and had to wait for everyone else to come through the door. She was shocked when Enigma decided to take a seat next to her, but was disappointed when he made no effort to put his hood down. Unlike in her home, no one said grace and started eating as soon as food was placed before them. Just out of habit, she bowed her head, put her hands together, and said a quick prayer of thanks for the meal.

"What was that?" Enigma asked, reaching into his hood to lower the scarf that covered his mouth so he could eat.

Ciel frowned, wondering if she had done something offensive. "I prayed for the meal," she said softly, seeing that no one else had noticed her odd behavior. "At home my mom would normally have said grace, but no one here seems to do that so I thought I should give a quick one."

"A few words to thank your gods for the meal you've been given?"

"Just one. I don't know what you would call me here, but back home I'm known as a Christian."

Enigma made a "hmm" noise and chewed on a piece of fruit curiously. "I've heard of your beliefs. They're not too different from my own, although different in subtle ways, and you actually have a piece of literature to help teach others your faith. Hylians fall short in that."

"How do you know what I believe?"

"I might have stumbled into another world once after I messed up using Farore's Wind. I didn't stay there long, but I ran into a priest and he tried to "exorcize" me. It was rather annoying." He paused to drink from his cup and then said, "I nearly lost my mind when I saw the queen on a poster outside of a building with a big sign hanging above the door that said Nintendo."

Ciel looked up at the man, trying to see inside of his hood. "Just who are you?" The hood turned and he held a finger in front of his mouth to ask for silence, but giving her an unobstructed view of the man's face. She gasped, but otherwise hid her shock over the revelation. "Why the secrecy?"

Enigma flicked her in the forehead, berating her for being nosy. "That's my business, but someday you'll learn the reason behind everything."

* * *

Zeke's stomach growled loudly, causing him to place a hand over his belly. "I wish Enigma would hurry up and return with that food he promised us." As he and Maiya searched the castle for the right armory, having been to three already, both were wracked with hunger pangs. Sakura was the only one who seemed unaffected by hunger, flying above their heads humming to herself. "He did say he was coming back, right?"

"Yes, he did. He said that he would be back later with food for the both of us," Maiya mumbled, holding onto Zeke's arm for support. "You should carry me." He looked at her and asked her why he should, and she answered, "You love me don't you?"

"I should think that would be obvious by now," he said with a sly grin. Throwing one of Maiya's arms over his shoulders, he told Maiya to jump and, when she was parallel to the ground, slipped his arm under her knees and said, "I don't see why you need me to carry you. I should still be in bed right now so I can't possibly be in a good enough condition to be carrying you around."

Maiya kissed his cheek saying, "Thank you, Love."

The castle seemed to grow bigger and bigger the longer they explored the many corridors. Zeke came to the conclusion that there were multiple rooms for the same purpose so people living in one area would not have to walk all the way to the other side of the castle to attend meetings or whatever it was they needed to do in the room. However, this did not explain why there were multiple armories in the castle. "Why was it necessary to have an armory for each group of people we wanted to honor? And why did we even want to honor some of these people? The knights of the Flaming Fist were far from honorable."

They peered into another room and found it to be another armory, hoping that it would be the last one they visited. "This one appears to honor the Crimson Tears," Maiya said. "Look, that's the pole arm Sir Terence broke in the battle with Ardor." Zeke let her down and they both went about examining the portraits and weapons that were cased in glass.

Maiya was ecstatic about the room, bouncing from one place to another. "Zeke, this room is incredible. All of the weapons used by the knights of the Crimson Tears are here, even Sir Link's shattered shield has been put back together to display their names." The prince did not appear to be listening, and Maiya went to him to see if he was okay.

He was staring at a portrait in the very back of the room that depicted the Crimson Tears in exquisite attire. The thing that caught his attention was that his mother was standing next to Sir Link again, and yet again they were smiling happily, but even this went over looked because Zeke's attention was on the slight bulge in his mother's belly.

"Hey, that must be Kenji," Maiya said, pointing at a fair-haired baby being held by Lady Midori. "His parents are Lady Midori and Sir Grogh, but for some reason he doesn't like to talk about it. I would be so proud if my parents were both knights."

Zeke reached out and touched the spot where he knew he had started to form. "My mother's pregnant in this portrait."

Maiya raised her eyebrow and regarded Zeke with a questioning stare. "So? She had to be pregnant at some point, right?"

"She's happy though. I've never seen her happy when it comes to me." The thought that maybe his mother had actually wanted him appeared in his mind, but he dispelled it angrily. _It doesn't matter if she wanted me. She hates me now and that's all that matters._ "Can we take this down?"

"Why?"

"Because I don't like it." Grabbing the side of the painting, he lifted it off of the wall and placed it behind a suit of armor where no one could see it. When he turned back to the wall, he discovered that there was a hole the size of the painting where it had been suspended six feet above the floor. "What do we have here?"

"Let's check it out," Maiya said excitedly, lifting herself up into the space. There was nothing to grab to help pull herself into the hole, and could only manage to get her upper body into it. With her lower body being the only thing visible, she asked Zeke to help her up. "But don't you dare look up my skirt."

Zeke pushed her up into the hole, but not before saying, "And if I do?"

Maiya turned around and offered her hand to him to help him up. "You already know what I'll do," she said with a grin. "Get up here, there's something you should see."

Taking Maiya's hand, he jumped up and, with her help, crawled into the small space. "What is there to see? This is hardly big enough for the two of us to fit inside."

"Not that privacy is an issue." Maiya repositioned so they would be more comfortable and gestured towards the back of the space where two ropes ran side by side from the bottom of the space to the top. "This isn't just a normal empty hole in the wall. This is an elevator."

"A what?"

"Using a system of pulleys and rope, you can lower or raise this box. Watch." She tested the ropes first, and then pulled down on one of them, causing the box to shift downwards. "See? Now let's find out where this goes." Pulling on the rope again, the box started to descend.

"Wait, where's that troublesome fairy?" Zeke asked.

"I am right here dummy," Sakura said from somewhere inside the box. "I followed Maiya in when you were not looking."

"Well how am I supposed to know where you are when you don't say anything?"

"That is the point. I am trying to be mysterious."

The space became pitch black and Zeke started to laugh. "Hey Maiya, guess what we could be doing right now." Something hit him in the head, ending his laughter.

"Careful prince, I'm not a very tolerant person when it comes to jokes like that." Maiya mumbled something about when there were other people around under her breath, but neither Zeke nor Sakura could make it out.

Sakura came out from behind Maiya and lit up the box with her light, sitting between the two humans. "I found something cool in the garden."

"What did you find?" Maiya asked.

"I found a little mouse creature that wore a red hat. He said that he was a Minish and that he wanted to fuse kinstones with me."

Zeke raised an eyebrow and frowned. "What did you do?"

"I punched him in the face and called him a pervert."

Maiya giggled. "Good job, Sakura. Men need to be put in their place if they think they can just come up to a woman and try to take advantage of her."

"For your information, a kinstone is magical good luck charm. If you can fit two pieces together you will be gifted with amazing luck and be showered with fortune," Zeke said.

Both Maiya and Sakura stared at him disbelievingly. "Zeke, kinstones are a myth," Maiya said. "That "Minish" wanted our little Sakura's purity, end of story."

The box stopped moving and Zeke looked out at the opening that had appeared. "We must be underneath the castle."

"Really? I would never of guessed," Maiya said, pushing him out of the elevator. "Hurry up, I'm starting to get cramps."

The room they found themselves in was more like a cave, with stalactites and stalagmites along with the sound of dripping water. Lanterns that lined a walkway illuminated the cavern, but instead of fire, the lanterns held shimmering balls of white light that only seemed to light the ground far enough for the next lantern to take over.

"I think I am going to stay over here," Sakura said, flying back into the elevator. "I will wait for you to return."

"Thanks Sakura, your bravery inspires me so much," Zeke mumbled, stepping onto the walkway and striding into the darkness. Maiya latched onto his arm and tried to match his stride. "What are the chances that this is another fairy fountain?" he asked, looking around for the tell tale signs of one.

"I doubt it, or our fairy friend wouldn't be hiding."

The darkness around them became stifling and restrictive, causing them to feel like they were suffocating. It picked at them, trying to find a way in so it could force them to submit to its' ferocity. It could smell fear, and it savored the taste of it.

"Zeke, I'm feeling a little scared," Maiya whispered even though it was unnecessary. Even though she was on the verge of being an adult, Maiya retained a fear of the dark when she was unarmed. "Perhaps we should go back?"

"There is nothing you should be afraid of," Zeke said with a smile. "Though frightening, the dark can do nothing but scare you with empty threats. It can do nothing to harm you."

"But it can conceal things that _can_ harm me."

"Well, if there is something out there, then they should be afraid because I won't let anything happen to you. I'll fight off anything that tries to take you away from me and they will rue the day they decided to jump in our path."

Maiya laughed and felt some of her uneasiness dissipate. "Oh, my hero." They both laughed, and the darkness around them seemed less threatening. "You mean it though? You'll protect me from all harm?"

"Yes, I will."

"Promise?"

"I promise. Even if I have to sacrifice my own life to do so."

"Well don't sacrifice yourself over small things like getting a thorn stuck in my finger. I'd feel bad if I wasted your life over something so ridiculous." Zeke stopped and she was forced to do the same. Looking up at him, she saw that he was wearing a serious expression on his face and she felt her heart melt.

Zeke kissed her forehead and said, "I will allow nothing to come between us, even if I have to slay death to do so. I swear on my honor as prince of Hyrule, you will be safe as long as you stand by my side."

"Wow, if you're anything like your father it's no wonder how he got your mom in bed with him," she said with a suggestive smile.

"Yeah, but I'm better than he is because I didn't even need words."

"But you got run through with a sword. I think he wins because he didn't get hurt as far as we know."

A brilliant light shone up ahead of them and the shadows scattered out of fear, afraid of their archenemy. Upon closer examination, the light came from a magnificent crystal embedded in the roof of the cavern that sparkled with the touch of magic.

"Whoever put that elevator there must have been one heck of a spell caster to be able to enchant the lanterns and that crystal," Maiya said in awe, impressed more by the size and purity of the crystal than the magic that it was infused with. "Do you think we can break off a chunk of that crystal to take with us?"

The question hung in the air for a while before Zeke asked her why. After she explained that a gem of that purity would fetch a good price in the market, he dismissed the idea, telling her that she had plenty of gems and jewels from the fairy fountain. "Besides, I think those would bring in a little more than a hunk of crystal."

Following the light of the crystal, they glimpsed two swords that had been placed in a pedestal at the top of a long and winding staircase. Quickly climbing the stairs, Zeke and Maiya came upon a sight they knew they would never forget. Glittering in the light, the two swords they had seen from below emanated a warmth that had allowed grass and flowers to grow on the top of the staircase. A small white stone had been placed before the two swords and on it the words 'Luster and Purity, the blades of Link and Zelda' had been etched.

Maiya gasped and brought her hands to her mouth. "They _do_ exist," she breathed, dropping to her knees. "Zeke, do you have any idea what we have discovered?"

The prince picked up the white stone and frowned. A hole had been drilled into the side and a piece of parchment was sticking out of it. "Yeah, rocks that make paper." Pulling out the parchment, he held it in his hand and realized it was a scroll. "What do you think this is?"

The girl snatched it from his hand before he knew what was happening and she sat down to read it. "Does this handwriting look familiar to you?" she asked, holding it so he could see it. "Looks kind of like your mother's, doesn't it?"

"That's my mom's handwriting, no doubt about it."

_The Luster Blade and Purity Sword, the married blades of Light,_

_When the blade of evil's bane fell victim to the corruption of darkness, it became necessary for another blade to be forged. However, no sword could match the lord of all swords that was forged by divine beings to shine in even the darkness of the Void. One sword would not be enough to combat the darkness that now pervaded the once brilliant blade known as the Master Sword. _

_One sword had already been forged, and it was named the Purity Sword for its flawless design and to complement the one who would wield it. Purity, the sword forged by a man and a Goron, was cast into the waters of the Queen Fairy's fountain and it was imbued with the essence of pure light. Darkness could no longer take a hold of the one who held the sword._

_Purity's chosen, the Luster Blade, was then forged, for every woman deserves a man to spend the rest of her life with. Forged by the same man as his wife to be, he was then taken to the Fallen Divine who saw her reflection in the blade and said that this blade would forever be known as the second greatest sword to ever be created. Raising her hammer high, she strengthened the blade and fused it with the same magic that had once coursed through the blade of evils bane. No sword would ever best this one._

_Luster and Purity were then joined in battle, shining brilliantly and bringing hope to the battlefront. Together, they stopped a horrible darkness from spreading and rectified the wrong that had been committed by a heretic. Now, together they sleep, Forever Together, Never Apart, Joined for all Eternity._

Zeke looked at the two blades with newfound interest, now knowing what they were. "That's amazing."

"More than amazing," Maiya said softly. "Zeke, these two swords are sought by warriors all over the country because they are legendary. They cannot be broken, and, though I doubt it, they cannot be defeated in combat. These two swords were chosen to guard the Master Sword, the blade of evils bane, after it was cleansed of darkness." Still awestruck, she looked at the two blades and said, "These are the most powerful swords in the land next to the Master Sword."

Looking over at Zeke, Maiya then said, "You should take Purity back to your mom."

"Why?"

"Think about it. This sword was made for her and only her. Even though she left it here, I'm absolutely sure that she wants it back. If you brought it to her, she would thank you for it."

Zeke thought about it for a moment and shrugged. "I guess it couldn't hurt to try." They both stood up and went to the magnificent blades. "We should take the other one too. Mom wrote in that letter that they are together forever and never apart, I think we should keep them together."

"Good idea," Maiya agreed. "We'll take both." Reaching out, she wrapped her fingers around Purity's hilt, pausing as she felt a pleasant wave of warmth run up her arm and into the rest of her body. As she pulled the blade from the pedestal, it gleamed even more brilliantly and Maiya became almost overwhelmed by a happiness that burned in her heart.

Taking a long moment to admire the blade known as Luster, Zeke placed his hand on the pommel and slowly worked his hand down to grip the hilt. Drawing the blade from its' pedestal, both Purity and Luster started to glow so brightly that Zeke and Maiya had to shield their eyes from the intense light.

When the light died out, Zeke saw that a wooden box had appeared where the pedestal was, and he knew that their mission was coming to a close. "That looks like what we came to get," he said quietly.

"What's inside of it?" Maiya asked, bending down to pick up the box.

"My mom told me I didn't need to know, so I have no idea. If it's so important that these two swords were placed here to guard it then I think we should respect her wishes and not open it."

Maiya regarded Zeke with a smile and stood up to kiss him. "It may be a little judgmental for me to say, but I think your mother should be a little nicer to her son."

With Purity, Luster, and the mysterious box in hand, Zeke and Maiya made their way back through the cavern and to the elevator where Sakura was waiting impatiently for them to return. "What took you guys so long?" she asked, looking up at them both when they approached the elevator.

"It was a long walk," Maiya said simply. "Let's get back up to the castle before Enigma comes back and starts to worry about us." Noticing that Zeke had an absent expression on his face, she asked him if anything was wrong.

"You said that Luster and Purity were chosen to guard the Master Sword," he said with a distracted tone. "If they were down there, then where is the Master Sword?"

"Where have you three been?" Enigma asked. He was standing in the middle of the room Zeke was staying in, and even with his face concealed it was plainly obvious that he was infuriated with them.

Zeke tossed the box to the man and went to lie on his bed, tired of being on his feet for the day. "We were finishing our mission."

Enigma stared at the box for a long moment before setting it down on a table. "I see. I apologize for being rude. When I returned and was unable to find you, I thought that something bad might have happened."

"Nope, we're fine," Maiya said, climbing onto the bed to take her place next to Zeke. "Better than fine, actually." She shared an amused glance with Zeke and they both started to chuckle. "Now, before you left you said something about bringing food. Did you?"

Feeling like a slave, Enigma pointed to a tray sitting on a table next to the fireplace. "I was going to bring you something back from Lon Lon Ranch, but Malon didn't make anything worth bringing along so I went to Ondine and Noèlle made something for the two of you. It looks good, so enjoy it. I must be going for there are other matters I must attend to. Have a good evening and be looking for Kenji some time tonight. I've told him that the front doors are unlocked so he can just come in on his own." He turned to leave, saying, "Have a safe trip home."

Maiya got up and brought the tray over to the bed, lifting lids to see what the meal consisted of. "Well, prince, it looks like we will be enjoying a delicious dinner made up of roast pork, fresh bread, probably fresh fruit, and what looks like pie for dessert. How does that sound?"

"I think it sounds great, but before the night's over I think I'll be having a little more than just pie for dessert." They both laughed, earning odd stares from Sakura.

"And what does that mean?" she asked, looking at the two as she landed next to the tray of food.

"It doesn't mean anything, Sakura," Maiya said, hiding an embarrassed smile. "Zeke's had his fair share of sweets for the day. He'll have to wait awhile before he gets more."

"Alright, I will take the pie then." The fairy started to walk over to the two slices that Noèlle had sent with Enigma, but a hand blocked her way.

"I said that Zeke has had enough sweets," Maiya said sternly, staring at the fairy. "I, however, have a crazy sweet tooth that needs to be sated. I don't mind sharing the pie with you, but I'm getting some or else."

* * *

Enigma waited in a dark alley with his arms crossed. He was on time for his appointment, but the other person was not. "What's taking her so long?"

"I'm here." Another cloaked person approached him in the alleyway, but she dropped her hood without hesitation. "I can't understand why you insist on wearing these things all the time. You must be uncomfortable." She stopped a few paces away from Enigma, but gave in to her heart and hugged the man. "Oh how I've missed you."

"Being away from you for so long has been far from easy," Enigma said, returning the embrace. "However, there is little time for us to discuss personal matters."

"You're right. How's our boy?"

"He and Maiya recovered what you sent them to find, but they're distracted by their love for each other."

Zelda's face became one of surprise, but she started to smile and laughed. "I can see them together, and I guess I can't be too surprised. Zeke's getting older and he's going to be an adult soon, so he's probably got starting a family on his mind."

"Perhaps, but I think he may be trying to start one a little prematurely," he said, letting his discomfort of the idea show in his tone. "After a bit of a dispute, Zeke ended up with a sword through him."

Zelda gasped, but was reassured by the thought that Enigma would have told her if he had been hurt badly. "You healed him?"

"Of course." He looked at Zelda and asked, "When are you going to apologize to him?"

"When he comes back home," Zelda responded, looking away from Enigma to hide her sadness. "I spent a lot of time talking to people about him, and he's turned out to be a good person despite the way I've treated him over the years and I feel awful for it."

"As you should be. You had no right to take your anger out on him."

"At least I didn't run away from the responsibility!" Zelda shouted, placing a hand on her chest. "Maybe I would've been able to deal with the stress if you would have stayed. You can't pin all of this on me. Our family fell apart because of you too. Every time I look at him I see you in his face and it's a constant reminder of how you took my love and stomped on it. It's no wonder I treat him horribly."

"Zelda, we never had a family! We had a mistake because we got carried away. I won't deny that the boy is my son, but we are not a family."

Holding back her tears, Zelda said, "Now I see where he gets his ability to hurt me." She turned around so she could leave, but Enigma had reached out and gripped her shoulder.

"Zelda, I'm sorry, but we've had this discussion before. We can't be together until this land has been cleansed of all darkness. With things the way they are now I can't in good conscience put down my sword for you."

With a sigh, she allowed the man to bend down and kiss her. "Just make sure he stays safe, or I'm blaming you." She left without another word, leaving Enigma alone in the alley.


	18. Chapter 18: Darkness Falls

Chapter 18: Darkness Falls

Kenji yawned as Castle Town came into view. It was well passed the middle of the night and he was looking forward to sleeping in a comfortable bed for the first time in four days. _Maybe I'll look for the king's old room_, he thought smugly._ I'll bet he had a soft bed that conquered even the most hyper child._ Gently spurring his horse into a gallop, he thought about soft beds and a good night's sleep, trying to forget that as soon as he woke up in the morning he would have to start his work on composing a ballad about Zeke and Maiya.

Castle Town was deserted just like he had expected, but he had not anticipated that it would appear haunted. Just like the rest of Hyrule, the castle and the town around it looked as if nothing had ever happened to it, making it appear like the inhabitants had only just left. From the bare streets to the empty homes and shops the place was like a ghost town. An aura of foreboding hung in the air like a sinister noose that choked him without restraint.

Stopping at a smithy that was at the bottom of the hill leading up to the castle, he scoured the building looking for some sort of weapon he could use in case the worst happened. He came across two twin long swords in the shape of katanas that were exceptionally light and knew he had found his arm extensions. After belting on the two swords, he ran up to the castle and discovered the front doors open. _Enigma said he would leave them unlocked, not open_. Taking off his glasses and storing them in his sleeve, he slowly approached the open doors.

"I see you have taken up the sword again, young Kenji."

Kenji whirled around and drew the two blades with impressive speed, but nearly fell over from the spin. Seeing that it was only the mysterious cloaked man that plagued Hyrule, he sighed out of relief and silently cursed himself for his overreaction. "Enigma, you startled me." He looked at the blades and shook his head as if to deny that he was really holding them. "I found these in a smithy because I have a bad feeling. I haven't held swords in nearly five years, so I'm hoping that nothing's wrong for the reason that I'm not feeling very confident."

Enigma drew a rusted sword from its sheath that was hidden by his cloak and weighed it experimentally. "I smell bulbins. We must hurry." He dashed into the castle with Kenji close behind him.

* * *

Zeke was awakened by a rough shove. With a groan, the prince pushed the person away from his bed, but the hands were soon pushing him again. "Maiya? Is that you?" Grudgingly, Zeke opened a singled eye and saw a short creature with green skin standing by his bed with a curious expression on its face. Shocked by the appearance of the bulbin, Zeke could only stare wide-eyed.

"Hello," the little green man said with a cheery grin.

Slowly sitting up in his bed, Zeke watched the creature cautiously and returned the greeting. "Who are you?" he asked after they had stared at each other for a while.

This seemed to please the creature immensely, for its smile widened and it said, "My name Borkin." Surprisingly, it held out its hand and shook Zeke's.

The prince was struck dumb by the bulbin's politeness. The overall opinion that was shared by the people of Hyrule in regards to the creatures was that they were barbaric and murderous creatures, but this monster named Borkin seemed far from that stereotype.

"Borkin! You are not supposed to speak to the white skin!" another bulbin shouted from the doorway. Apparently this was not the first time Borkin had done something that had caused his superiors to be angry with him. Something caused a commotion in the hall and drew the bulbin away, leaving the small bulbin to take care of Zeke.

"Sorry, but Borkin must follow orders," Borkin said, lifting his club to his shoulder. Looking back towards the door, he turned his gaze back to Zeke. "Move quick and you can beat Morkis." With a powerful swing, Borkin hit himself in the head with his club, causing him to drop to the floor. The noise that was made was sickening, but it was enough to wake Zeke from his stupor.

"Sakura! Wake up! We've got to go rescue Maiya!" Jumping into his boots, he threw his chain mail over his thin sleeping shirt and drew his sword. He took two steps out of his door before being thrown back into the room by another bulbin, this one bigger and more muscular than Borkin.

"I don't suppose your name is Morkis," he said as he picked himself up off the floor. Gripping his sword tightly, he jumped up and thrust his sword at the bulbin, but the creature caught the sword in his hand and tore it from the prince's hands. With a strong kick, he sent Zeke soaring across the room once again.

Tired of being kicked around like a child's ball, Zeke stood up and grabbed the first thing he could reach, surprising himself when the object turned out to be a sword. Twirling the sword in his hand, he launched himself at the bulbin and brought the sword down, slicing clean through the creatures arm and into its shoulder. Black blood fell from the severed limb as the bulbin howled in pain. This distracted it long enough for Zeke to run the sword through its heart.

It had happened so fast. _I wonder if this is what it was like for Maiya when she stabbed me_, he wondered as he stared at the blood that was running down his blade. So much blood was pouring from the wounds he had inflicted on the bulbin that the room wreaked of death, causing his stomach to clench and threatening to purge his system of all the food he had eaten. Shaking his head to rid himself of his nausea, he told himself that he had to get to Maiya before the monsters did. This thought alone strengthened him enough to get his feet moving again. Picking up his sword, he sheathed it and twirled the new one experimentally. _This sword will serve me well_, he thought. But there was something wrong with it. The hilt was becoming scorching hot to the point that Zeke dropped it, rubbing his palm to ease the pain he felt. In order to hold onto the sword, he put on one of his gloves and wrapped a cloth around the hilt, making the heat bearable. Nodding in satisfaction, he prepared himself for the upcoming fight.

On his way to the door, he tripped on one of Borkin's legs, redirecting Zeke's attention to the sprawled out creature. "I don't know what your buddies will think if they find you here, but try not to go anywhere," Zeke said as he tossed a sheet over the bulbin. Adrenaline pumping through his veins, he muttered a quick thank you to the creature that spared his life before belting out a battle cry and preparing himself for battle.

Running out into the corridor, he saw a group of bulbins fighting with someone he could not see, but if they were fighting bulbins, then they were allies of his. Rushing to aid whoever it was that was fighting, he jumped high into the air and brought his sword down on an exposed back. Black blood gushed from the wound and splattered the floor, but this went unnoticed as Zeke attacked another bulbin.

"Zeke? Where are the swords you found earlier today?" Enigma shouted, cutting down a bulbin that had fierce looking horns growing from its head.

"One's in my room and Maiya has the other, why?"

"I think that's what they're after."

Kenji spun viciously, turning himself into a deadly blade-wielding tornado. "Not to sound rude, but let's focus on killing these demon spawn before they do the same to us!" Twirling his blades with masterful skill, he dispatched another two bulbins.

"Zeke, you go get Maiya and make sure she's okay," Enigma ordered. "Move with haste."

Zeke sprinted down the corridor and found his path free of enemies all the way to the third floor where he kicked Maiya's door open and ran in to make sure there were no bulbins already in the room. He was relieved to see that the only occupant of the room was Maiya and, much to his surprise, Sakura. Both were sleeping peacefully and undisturbed, even after Zeke kicked open the door.

Walking over to the girl, he crouched next to her bed and gently shook her. "Maiya, wake up."

"Zeke, I'm not sleeping with you."

"Sorry, but there are more pressing matters at hand. You need to get up, now."

Maiya opened one of her scarlet eyes and scowled up at him. "What could be more important than me getting a good night's sleep?"

Zeke smiled and held up the sword in his hand to show her the black blood that was all over it. "Bulbins have invaded the castle," he said with a smile. But then he became serious and said, "Enigma thinks they're after the blades of light."

Sitting up, Maiya rubbed her eyes and slid out of bed. "Help me into my chain mail. I can't lift my right arm very high because of my wound." Softly pushing over the fairy girl to wake her up, Maiya brought Sakura to a minor state of alertness. "Sakura, you gotta wake up now."

"Bud I dun wanna," Sakura mumbled as she crawled underneath a pillow. "Go 'way."

Sharing an annoyed gaze with Maiya, Zeke said, "We could come back for her after this is all over." It was obvious that neither of them liked the idea very much.

"I don't know if I can leave her here, Zeke," Maiya responded, lifting the pillow by an inch to see the soft glowing light. "If something went wrong she would be all by herself."

Zeke reached down and scooped the fairy up in his hands, holding her at eye level. "Sakura, there are bulbins in the castle. I'm going to need your help to fight them."

Sakura rose to her feet and stretched, smacking Zeke as hard as she could. "I just wanted to sleep. Is that too much to ask?" she said as she massaged her wrist, realizing a bit too late that attempting to hurt Zeke would only bring pain to herself. "What are we waiting for? Let us go rid the castle of the bulbins."

Getting Maiya into her chain mail was an ordeal in itself. Despite having only one sleeve, positioning her arms so that they would both enter the mail along with her head was awkward and was nearly impossible to do without causing any pain. By the time they had finally succeeded in getting the armor on Maiya, a dark red line had appeared on her bandage.

Zeke stared at the line worriedly, softly running his thumb along its length. "Are you sure you want to fight, Maiya?" he asked. "If you don't give that time to heal it'll leave a bad scar and the muscle might not mend right." He knew that she was still capable of fighting. It was her right arm that was injured, and she was left handed, but she needed both of her hands to wield her sword and she had limited mobility.

The girl just pushed Zeke aside and belted on her sword. "Don't worry about it. I'll be fine," she said as optimistically as she could. It was clear that Zeke was worried, and she had to appear strong or he would be thinking about her during the fight. This she could not allow. "I'll follow you. You can run through like the berserk you are and I'll kill the leftovers. Does that sound good to you?"

With a sigh, Zeke started for the door, giving Maiya a back glance. "Don't die, Maiya."

With a smile, Maiya drew her blade and winked at the prince. "Right back atcha, Gorgeous."

Together they charged out into the hall. To Zeke's complete horror bulbins had made it to the third floor, and there were more than on the first floor. With clenched teeth, he rushed headlong into the group and cut into the first bulbin within range of his sword. Seeing that his other sword had partially come out of its sheath he spun hard and drew it with his free hand. Though he had no experience wielding two swords at the same time, he thought it would be easy as long as he used his momentum to swing them. However, he had not thought hard enough about it before doing it.

A bulbin with a large piece of metal that slightly resembled a sword hit Zeke's new sword and sent it flying out the window. Cursing himself for his negligence, Zeke gripped the hilt of his blade tightly as he slashed upwards to break through the bulbin's guard before removing its head with a quick slash.

To his left, Zeke could just barely see Maiya fighting a bulbin that was getting increasingly frustrated by its inability to hit the girl. "Maiya! Quit playing with the monster and kill it already!" Zeke shouted angrily. Despite being in a serious battle, she was still treating everything with her sickening optimism. As he cut down the bulbin before him, the prince made a mental note to scold Maiya when everything was over. "Damn it! Where's Kenji and Enigma?"

The last time Zeke had seen them was down on the first floor, and he had left them to make sure Maiya was okay. _Is it possible that I left them to die_? He had no time to think about it. "One bulbin down, fifty more to go. Come on!"

*

"Hey, Enigma. Who do you think is pulling the strings here?" Kenji asked as he rushed up the steps with a hoard of bulbins behind them. They had been doing a great job of holding them back to give Zeke time to find Maiya, but then the whole legion of bulbins appeared and they both made the decision to run. "Bulbins never attack without a good reason."

Even though he was running as fast as he could, Enigma's hood stayed on his head, concealing the expression he had on his face. Kenji found this irritating because the man very rarely responded to his questions. However, Enigma was thinking the same thing when Kenji had started talking. "Bulbins offer their allegiance to powerful men. You can bet that whoever is behind this is one hell of a warrior."

"Stop right there, black robe!" A bulbin jumped forward and grabbed Enigma's cloak, pulling the man backwards down the stairs.

Kenji started to turn around to help, but Enigma shouted, "Don't stop! Help Zeke!" He disappeared amid the mass of bulbins and was unable to utter another word.

Turning his back to the group, the Harper tore up the staircase and kicked a suit of armor down to hinder the bulbins. "Take that you demons!" Rushing down the hall, he could hear an uproar up ahead of him and he knew who he would find.

"It's about time you showed up!" Zeke shouted as he cleaved a bulbin's head and got his sword stuck, sending a gallon of putrid black blood onto the floor with every attempt to pull his blade free. "Where's Enigma?!" Finally managing to free his weapon, he spun hard to the right and surprised himself when his blade went through a thick neck, sending the head of the bulbin into the air. To distract another bulbin, Zeke kicked the head at it and hit it in the chest, diverting its attention just long enough for the prince to get close enough to attack.

Thrusting his swords into a bulbin's back and pulling apart so that its torso fell separately from its legs, Kenji hacked another bulbin to pieces before saying, "The bulbins caught him when we were running up the stairs! Don't worry about him, he can take care of himself!" A bulbin thrust his sword at Kenji, but the journeyman ducked under the arm and cut the bulbin's arm into ten pieces, each looking like a green pork chop slathered in a blackberry sauce. "I would hate to break up this lovely fight we're going through, but we should get going!"

"You're right!" Maiya shouted, twirling around like a deadly dancer. "There are too many of these guys for us to fight to the last!"

Zeke heard Maiya scream and turned to see if she had been hurt, but then he felt something dig into the small of his back and he was launched out a window. Catching his breath, he stared wide-eyed at the empty space beneath him. As he felt gravity pulling him down he started to scream, a sense of vertigo clouding his vision. _I'm about to die!_ he mentally cried as he plummeted towards the garden below. Then he felt something around his waste, and then his feet were on the ground. His weight restored, he fell down and started to gasp for air, just realizing that he had stopped breathing.

"You sure have a strange way of having fun, prince," Enigma said with his arms crossed, the only indication that he was irritated. His cloak was ripped in a few places and he was bleeding from his thigh where he had tied a bandage to help stifle the flow. "You're lucky I saw you falling or you would be dead right now."

"I appreciate it, Enigma," Zeke murmured as he stood to his feet. "What about Kenji and Maiya?"

Enigma chuckled and said, "Try to relax, prince. Your fight is over." He disappeared in a burst of leaves, leaving Zeke alone in the garden. The prince looked around and became aware that he had no idea where he was. He was standing in a corridor of hedges that stood ten feet tall, flower blossoms peeking out of the hedges like curious eyes. "Damn it," Zeke muttered softly. "How the hell am I going to get back to the castle?" Wandering around in the hedges was a bad idea, but standing around doing nothing was not the brightest idea either.

_Sakura_, Zeke said, reaching out with his mind. _What's going on up there?_

_Maiya and Kenji are on their way down to the garden right now. Enigma distracted the bulbins with some flashy magic and left them in a daze. Do you want me to come find you?_

_No, that won't be necessary. Let me know if something happens_. Wiping the blood off of his sword on a bush, Zeke sheathed his blade and started to look for a way out of the garden that did not involve destroying the vegetation. Now that he was out of the chaos, he realized that his other sword had been thrown out the same window he had been kicked out of. "That sword should be around here somewhere."

Searching for the sword in the garden proved to be a difficult task, for Zeke could not find it anywhere he looked. He looked in bushes, hedges, and he even stuck his hand into a rose bush and, finding nothing, pulled it out to see his glove shredded. If it had not been so quiet, Zeke would have been okay with his lack of success. Outside of the castle, no sound could be heard that hinted at a battle going on. This made him nervous in regards to the others. Every few minutes he would get an image from Sakura showing him where they were, but he wanted to be with them so that he could help fight and protect them. It would have been better than wandering around in a maze made of shrubbery looking for a sword that he let fly out a window.

"That sword wasn't even mine," he mumbled as he turned left at a cross section and found himself walking into a pagoda that had a small stream running underneath it. There was a bench in the pagoda that he took a seat on to rest his legs. Running a hand through his hair, he silently summoned the image of the garden out of his mind, the one with the aerial view he had gotten when he was flying out the window. The maze did have an entrance and an exit, but he was saved by Enigma and placed in an area he had not seen. For all he knew, he was in a part of the maze that was not connected to the rest of the garden. Balling his hand into a fist, Zeke hit one of the support posts angrily. Suddenly, everything became strange.

While it had been dark before, it was now so bright that a haze hung over everything before Zeke. He rubbed his eyes vigorously and looked around, seeing no change. Standing, he clutched the balustrade and peered into the garden. Everything had suddenly become more beautiful, and now he could smell a mixture of calming aromas that made him feel sleepy as the heat from the sun coaxed him into a state of relaxation.

"_Zelda, come here. Mommy wants to show you something_." The voice was soft and it echoed in the prince's ears. Turning around swiftly, he saw a gorgeous woman with red hair and green eyes sitting on the bench he had just occupied. The woman had kind eyes that saw goodness in all things, with a smile that could warm even the most chilled heart. When she opened her mouth to call for her daughter again, Zeke was awestruck by how pleasant her voice was. It was neither too soft nor too harsh, and it had the same calming affect as the garden. "_Zelda, dear, come hither._"

Zeke heard the sound of little feet padding through dirt and turned to see a little girl about as tall as his waist running up to the pagoda with an exceptionally pretty white rose. "_Mommy! Look at what I found!_" Jumping into her mother's lap, the little Zelda presented the flower as a gift and gave the woman an affectionate hug.

"_That's quite a beautiful rose, Zelly,_" the woman, whom Zeke assumed must have been his grandmother Faye, said as she returned the hug and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "_Do you know what the white rose represents_?" she asked, getting a no in response. "_It represents purity, my child. Take this lesson to heart, for it is critical in the world of magic._" Holding the rose by the bottom of its stem, Queen Faye blew on the petals, coating them with ice. "_Someone with a pure heart can control many powers that can be both beneficial and damaging._" She nuzzled the flower with her nose before blowing on it forcefully and causing the rose to burst into flames.

Zelda stared at this with a horrified expression, covering her mouth with her hands in shock, but unable to look away from the flower that was now nothing but cinders. Seeing this, Faye took one of her daughter's hands and placed it on the stem of the flower.

"_My daughter, if you wish it to be so, then this flower will live once more_," Faye said.

The little princess just stared at the flower, unsure of what to do. "_But mommy, the rose is gone now_," she said, trying to explain to her mother that there was no way the flower could come back. Looking up at her mother, she saw that the woman was smiling and nodded towards the rose. To both Zeke and Zelda's utter astonishment, the rose's petals had started growing back, but instead of returning in the original color of white, they were now silver. "_Did _I_ do that?_" Zelda asked, completely perplexed. "_How did it come back?_"

Smiling proudly, Faye said, "_Only you can answer that question, my darling._" Looking out towards the garden, the woman sighed happily and said, "_I want you to present this rose to the man you wish to marry. Until you find the man with whom you shall spend the rest of your life with, keep it here in this garden where it will stay safe from harm._" After Zelda had left to find a hiding place for her treasure, Faye grew somber and sadness filled her eyes. "_Beware of the whims of magic, my child, for they can be dangerous. Anger, like love, can summon powerful magic that can overwhelm the weak hearted._"

The light faded and Zeke found himself back in the darkness of night, once again in the eerie silence. "What was that?" he asked, hoping there would be someone on the other side of a bush ready to give him an explanation. _The other side of a bush_, he thought. Running the way he had seen the miniature version of his mother go, he could vaguely see a hazy light just going around a corner. Without thinking, he dashed after the light, not knowing what following the little girl would bring to him. As he rushed through the corridors of the maze, he would occasionally see the little princess's dress billowing behind her, and once he thought she had looked back to see who was following her.

Through holes in the bushes, over small bridges, and even under low hanging foliage, Zeke followed the girl that would be his mother; unable to comprehend where she was going. The girl obviously knew where she was going, but she had spent all of her years traveling through this green labyrinth and had an advantage over him.

After what seemed like an eternity, Zeke finally saw a clearing appear and he thought that he had finally found the way out, but, walking into the area, he realized that he could not be farther from finding the exit. He was in the very center of the garden. It was a circular area that was about twenty feet across with a small stream that circled around it. In the center of the clearing he could see the little blonde girl crouching over her silver rose, patting dirt around the base of the stem.

"_Stay right here, flower_," she said as she stood up and brushed the dirt off of her hands. "_Someday, I'm going to find me a valiant and brave prince who will come to my rescue. It is to him that you will go. To my prince charming. He will come from a big castle where he will take me to be his queen._"

The little girl disappeared and Zeke felt his eye twitch. "Prince charming? You married a fisherman," he mumbled, walking over to where the girl had stood. "And you never even mention my father. I doubt that _he_ was your prince charming."

Zeke saw a glint where she had been crouched, realizing it was the sword he had been using. Much to his surprise, it was laying in the grass next to a rose with silver petals. Squatting down to look at the flower, he could see that it was incomplete. A petal had either fallen off or been plucked off, but either way, the rose was no longer perfect. "You never found your prince charming, did you mom?" he mumbled as he gently touched the flower. "You met my father, and even married Roland, but you didn't…love either of them, did you?" As he continued to stare at the flower, he began to feel a sense of pity for his mother. _It's no wonder she's always so angry. She's disappointed with how things turned out._

Picking up the fallen sword, he rose to his full height and looked up at the moon. It was a harsh realization, but he finally understood something that he had not seen before. _This whole time, she has been forced to be around men she did not and does not love. And I am a reminder of one of her most painful memories. I really am a horrible son._ "How can you love the son of a man who merely used you for his own gain?"

"Zeke?"

Turning around, he saw Maiya and Sakura at the entrance of the clearing, both looking quite disheveled. "Where are the other two?" he asked quietly, afraid that if he spoke harshly that the object of his mother's love would wither and die.

Maiya looked back the way she had come and shook her head. "I don't know. Sakura was following your memories and I was following her. We must have lost Kenji and Enigma while we were looking for you." Slowly walking over to him, she placed a hand on his shoulder and turned him around so she could see his face. "Are you okay?"

His eyes were so sad that it was almost contagious, filling her with feelings of depression. "It's not everyday that a son becomes enlightened in regards to the reason of his mother's hatred towards him." Zeke leaned forward and touched his forehead to Maiya's, closing his eyes to hide the shame he felt. "I feel like I shouldn't exist."

He felt Maiya's soft lips on his cheek and then he felt a tickling sensation on his other. Opening his eyes revealed the fairy emulating the girl in a comical fashion. Being so small, she could not really kiss his cheek, but it was comforting that she was willing to try. "I am sorry that you feel your mother is unhappy all because of you," Sakura said as she floated in front of his face. "But you are here now and you have people who love you. Maiya loves you, your sister loves you, and even I love you. As long as someone cares about you, you do not have to feel alienated and alone. We are here for you, Zeke."

Slipping an arm around Maiya to pull her into him, Zeke smiled at his guardian fairy and said, "I'd give you a hug, little Sakura, but I'm afraid I would squish you."

Plopping onto his head, Sakura laughed and said, "Just show your affection to Maiya. I can feel your gratitude for my words."

And this he did. Hugging Maiya tightly, afraid that if he held her loosely that she would disappear. She did not complain either. Having just fought a hoard of bulbins, Maiya was feeling vulnerable and wanted the attention Zeke had to show her.

"Well isn't this a touching sight," someone said from the shadows. A man stepped forward, revealing a nasty smile that revealed his white teeth. In his hand was the sword with the midnight blue blade, Luster, and it was covered in crimson blood. "A boy and a girl in love, how precious." His grey eyes surveyed the scene before him with an analytical gaze. "I just ran into a robed man who thought he could match the might of this blade. Are you going to try to get in my way as well?"

Without realizing what he was doing, Zeke pushed Maiya behind him and held the sword he had found in front of him. "That sword doesn't belong to you," he said, his eyes studying the blood that was on the blade. "I'm sorry, but I cannot allow you to leave this place with it in your possession." Before the man could respond to his threat, Zeke rushed forward and swung his sword at the man.

Luster came up in the blink of an eye and blocked the slash. The man showed no signs of strain and laughed. "You wish to pit the Master Sword against the blade that already bested it once? How foolish of you." With the flick of his wrist, he knocked Zeke's sword down.

Seeing this as a possibility, Zeke ducked to the side and drew his own blade, slashing at the man's arm. Stars burst before his eyes as pain erupted in his head. He felt his feet come off of the ground and soon he was on the ground gasping for air. Before he could recover, he felt a hand on his neck and then he was hanging in the air.

"I don't much care for insects," the man said directly into Zeke's face, his breath rank with what could possibly be spoiled fruit. With his vision blurred, Zeke could not see that the Luster Blade had been pulled back and was ready to go through his heart. "Good bye, foolish prince."

There was a howl of pain and Zeke felt himself fall back to the ground. His vision cleared just enough for him to see that Maiya had thrown her sword through the man's thigh. "Keep your hands off of him," she threatened.

The man started to advance on her, but Zeke stepped into his path again and pointed his blade at him. "We're not done yet." With a sword in his leg, the man was moving slower than he had been, giving Zeke the edge he needed to beat him.

Lifting his sword high, Zeke brought it down at the man's head, but the man was able to block the blow and retaliated with a slash at Zeke's side. Zeke met the blade before it could connect with his flesh, and he was able nick the man's shoulder with the tip of his sword. Feeling that the man was going to be unable to fight back, Zeke prepared himself to finish the job, but something was off. As he was swinging his blade to remove the man's head, a powerful force threw him back into Maiya, shattering his sword.

"Did you really think you could kill me so easily?" the man asked as he pulled the sword out of his thigh and threw it to the side. "I am in possession of incredible power, boy, and I will not be killed by the likes of you!" Jumping into the air, he held Luster above his head and aimed to strike Zeke.

Appearing in a burst of leaves, Enigma knocked the sword off course and threw a fist into the man's face. "I pity the man who taught you how to fight," he said darkly. From behind Enigma, Zeke and Maiya could see that Enigma was wounded, but the man was ignoring it quite successfully.

The other man glared at Enigma and growled. "We'll have to finish our fight another time, prince. I wanted the complete set of swords, but the Luster Blade is the only one I want for now. I'll be back for the other. In the mean time…" Reaching out his hand, a rope burst from his palm and coiled itself around Maiya's ankle, pulling her over to him. "I'll be taking your woman as a trophy. Don't worry, prince, I'm always very gentle with my women. When they're dead, they don't refuse a man's advances."

The man disappeared with Maiya in a cloud of dark smoke before either Zeke or Enigma could do anything to stop him. "M-Maiya?" Zeke stammered, reaching out to stop the abduction. His heart felt as if it had just been torn in half, and tears started to fall down his cheeks.

Enigma cursed and fell to his knees, a hand jumping to put pressure on his wound. "The bulbins are still here," he said roughly. "Find Kenji and go to Lon Lon Ranch. You'll be safe there. I'll try my best to find Maiya." Slashing his hand in the air, Enigma drew a circle outlined with runes and hieroglyphs using a strange golden light. He thrust his hand into the center of the circle and then, appearing to have found something solid on the other side of the circle, was sucked into it and disappeared.

"Maiya…"


	19. Chapter 19: Greatest Gift

Chapter 19: Greatest Gift

"Prince Zeke, where is Enigma?" Kenji asked as he ran into the clearing, holding his two blades at the ready. When Maiya and Sakura had run off into the shrubbery maze, he had gotten lost and took a turn directly into where the bulbins had been. Though he appeared unharmed, Kenji was panting and his face was flushed from exertion. "And where's Maiya? Since the battle is over I'd like to tell her something."

Zeke threw his sword hilt down and dropped to his knees, bowing his head in shame. "The man giving the orders to the bulbins was indeed after the legendary blades of light, but he was satisfied with one. In order to escape, he took Maiya and disappeared in a cloud of black smoke. Enigma went after him."

Kenji swore explosively, shocking the prince with harsh words that were never spoken lightly. "We should go after them," he said, turning to leave.

"Enigma said to leave the castle and to go to Lon Lon Ranch. As much as I want to go after that man, I fear Enigma more than death and I wouldn't want to go against his orders." The words came out of his mouth, but his mind was saying something else. He wanted nothing more than to somehow save Maiya, even if he died in the process. "I want to go get Maiya too, but Enigma gave us an order and he said that he would rescue her. I have to trust that he'll succeed."

For a long while, they just stared at each other and Zeke thought that Kenji would ignore the words of the cloaked man and go after Maiya anyway, in which case he would be close behind. The Harper cursed again and flicked his blades to fling the blood off before sheathing them. "If we're going to the ranch then we should get going soon. It will be time for the morning meal by the time we get there. Grab what you need and let's go." He started to cut his way through the bushes, muttering under his breath angrily.

Overwhelming guilt and frustration pressed against Zeke and restricted his breathing. After promising to protect her from harm, he was unable to prevent her from being taken away by a madman who would probably use her for his own pleasure. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her.

Rising to his feet, Zeke followed after Kenji and headed back to the castle, allowing his feet to take him where they thought he needed to be. All around him he could hear shouting, probably bulbins trying to get out of the castle before the two remaining blade-wielding demons came after them for revenge. It was not a completely ridiculous idea. If his sword had not been broken, Zeke thought that he might actually consider going after the stragglers. However, getting out of the castle was a better idea so he continued to follow his feet.

Not surprisingly, they carried him straight to his mother's old room and strode over to where Maiya had hidden Purity, his mother's sword. Wrapping his fingers around the hilt, he held it aloft and examined the blade. The sword had lost the brilliance that had filled him with awe when he had first seen it, and while before it had seemed to be full of life, it was now just a sword. With her companion gone, Purity was so much less of what she once was. _She feels the same way I do_, he thought as he looked at his reflection in the blade. "You have my word, Purity. I'll get them back. I'll personally bring you Luster, and then Maiya and I will put you two where you can rest for all eternity. I promise."

BANG

A green light lit up the room from behind the prince, but he was hardly affected by it. This evening had hardened his resolve and it would take much more than noises and flashing lights to scare him. Calmly turning around, he found a man dressed like Enigma, but this man had no qualms about showing his identity. His black hair stood straight up in short spikes, giving him a rebellious look that was accented by the crooked grin on his face. While his skin was pale in color, he had painted the skin around his eyes with a black substance that gave him a ghostly look. To complete his ensemble he had designed his knight earpiece to look like a long golden fang with an eye engraved on its surface to show that he was a Knight of the Seeking Eye. "Greetings, prince."

"Sir Orca." Zeke had encountered this knight on several occasions due to the fact that it was Roland who had trained him. Although he was exceptionally good-natured over all, Zeke found his personality annoying because he was sick and intensely optimistic. Compared to his lazy and sarcastic teacher, Orca was an eyesore. "What do you want?"

The man looked around the room and gave Zeke a toothy grin. "A raid of sorts. I'll bet your mother had some real nice personals."

"And that is the reason why nobody likes you," Zeke said, his eye twitching. "I ask you again, what do you want?"

Orca rolled his eyes and reached into his cloak. "Roland wanted me to give you these." He held out a bundle of pictographs that Zeke took and put in his belt, which seemed odd to the knight. "You're not going to look at them?"

"I'll look at them later. Is there anything else you have come here for?"

"No, but I think you would like to know that pirates have been seen roaming these parts and that you would do well to avoid them." Seeing that his presence was ill accepted, he bid Zeke farewell and disappeared in another flash of green light.

"Good riddance," Zeke mumbled. Before he left the room, he grabbed a few things that he could not in good conscience leave behind, such as Maiya's possessions. Returning to the room he had stayed in, he put the things he had gathered in a bag that Sir Link had left behind when Hyrule had been flooded and added a few more items to it.

Kenji entered the room and looked around with a curious expression. "So, this was the room of the legendary Sir Link? Not exactly what I expected, but, then again, Link was far from a normal person." Surprising Zeke in the process, he laid a bundle on the bed and unrolled it to reveal the broken blade. "Was this your sword?"

Zeke turned and nodded. "Yeah. It was a gift for my seventeenth birthday." Looking down at the blade he had been using with his own, his hand started to throb as the hilt scorched his hand. He tossed it on the bed and rubbed his palm to ease the tingling he could feel. "This sword burned my hand. Why?"

"That's the Master Sword," Kenji said in awe, gazing at the blade like a child in a candy store. "The blade of evils' bane."

"Doesn't look like the Master Sword." Afraid that it would burn him again, Zeke just examined it from a distance as he threw his things into a bag. The only image he had ever seen of the sword was on a tapestry that was hanging in the archives that depicted Sir Link in his moment of triumph over Ganondorf. In the tapestry, the Master Sword was magnificent with an azure hilt and a long blade. But the blade before him had a wine-colored hilt and a cracked blade that hardly seemed to resonate with holy energy.

"That's because it was broken by Luster almost eighteen years ago," Kenji explained. "Or so goes the story. Apparently the sages refused to fix it when it was broken, so it was taken to Bigoron and he tried his best to do it justice. The end result was a mockery to the blade, but it still retains all of its power even though it looks nothing like it used to."

"Strange." Zeke realized that it was the sword that he had been sent to recover, and he was stricken with a burst of anger. "How did mother expect me to find this?!" He threw the sword back into its box and slammed the lid shut, doing the clasp to keep it from opening again. "If I hadn't of wanted to burn that one picture I would never have found the elevator!"

"If you had not cut her off when she was saying good bye she might have told you about the elevator," Sakura said, flying in through a window.

"Where have you been?!"

"I was with Maiya, but she sent me away," she said, kicking a pebble that was sitting on one of the dressers. "I just wanted to make sure she was going to be okay."

Zeke held out his hand with his palm up, giving the fairy a landing space. "It's going to be okay. Enigma went after her, and if anyone can get her back it'll be him."

Kenji pointed at the fairy and gasped. "What in the world _is_ that?"

"This is my guardian fairy, Sakura. She's not as helpful as she claims to be, but she tries her best to offer her assistance and for that I'm grateful." He smiled as she jumped to his shoulder and hugged his neck, telling him that she was happy to be with him. "Maiya and I kind of adopted her into our family. If only she were a little bigger I'd let her play with Faye back home."

"I didn't know that Maiya's related to you," Kenji said with a frown, wondering how it was possible that information of that nature could have evaded him for so long.

With a laugh, Zeke finished gathering the things he wanted and shook his head. "She's not, but I'd like to bring her into my family if her parents will let me have her." He walked passed Kenji, who had donned an understanding expression, and motioned for the Harper to follow him. "Come on. We should get going."

Kenji looked at a lump on the floor and prodded it with his toe. "What should we do about this thing? Should we kill it and put it out of its misery? After all, bulbins don't reward failure. Since he failed to kill you, the price he'll pay is most likely death."

_Borkin, I had completely forgotten_, Zeke thought. There was no time to do anything, so he told Kenji to just leave him alone and that he would find his own path. "Move quickly. If we hurry we might be able to avoid the pirates that have been roaming around this area lately."

"Pirates?" Kenji ran alongside Zeke and inquired about any information he thought would be necessary for him to know. When Zeke gave his theory, he wholeheartedly agreed. It made sense that when the floodwaters evaporated that any ships that were sailing over the field would have been stranded and the crews would have had to start heading for wherever they thought they could find supplies. "So who was it that kidnapped Maiya?"

Zeke had no idea. It had been too dark to see the man clearly, and his voice was unfamiliar so all the prince had to go on was his size. "I don't know. He was tall and muscular, that's all I know." Dashing through the castle, Zeke had a feeling that they were being watched, but he could not locate anyone else in the corridors.

"He had brown hair and dark skin," Sakura said. "I saw his face when he returned to his hide out, and he was rather handsome."

"Raikkus." Kenji whispered, both Zeke and himself stopping to look at each other.

"The ambassador of the Gerudo people? You're kidding." Zeke did not seem to buy this theory, but it seemed so blasphemous that it was hard to believe.

"I'm not." Kenji told Zeke about the last time he had seen the man and what he had taken from the Archives. "Now that I think about it, there was a scroll on his list that told about the legends of Hyrule, and the very last entry was of Purity and Luster. That would have given him the information he wanted to see. He took Luster thinking that it would make him invincible due to the rumors that surround the sword that no man wielding it can be defeated in combat."

Zeke gripped the wrapped bundle that was Purity and grimaced. "If that's true, then we're in serious trouble."

They returned to running, but Kenji dismissed the idea. "I know something that most people don't know, and that is that the sword can only be wielded by Sir Link of the Crimson Tears. It's powerless in anyone else's hands, so we have little to fear from Luster unless Raikkus brainwashes Sir Link to fight for him which I doubt is even possible."

"Either way," Zeke said, rounding a corner to enter the main foyer. "We need to warn my mother about this. If he has Luster, then I'm afraid he will attack New Castle Town. This night has told us one thing, and that's that he has allies. Bulbins may not be smart, but they're strong and knowledgeable in the ways of combat. They are not enemies we should take lightly. In large numbers, they could do a lot of damage."

"Well in that case, let's hope that the Crimson Tears are still the best warriors in the land, or your mother's going to be in trouble."

* * *

"Enigma? What are you doing here at this hour?" Calintz had only just received the summons to Roland's office, but he was fully dressed and ready for combat nonetheless. All of the remaining Knights of the Crimson Tears had gathered, and even Queen Zelda had dragged herself out of bed to attend the meeting.

"Glad you could make it, Calintz," Zelda said gruffly, her voice still under the affects of a long day of talking without rest. "Enigma has terrible news, and seeing that you are the leader of the Crimson Tears since Link is absent, it is imperative that you take initiative."

Calintz looked at the others to see if they approved of the declaration of his appointment, but none of them seemed to care. Link himself had chosen Calintz as his successor, but he had been quite young at the time and it had never come up before. The group's silent acceptance was disheartening, however they all looked quite tired. Terence was still dressed in his sleeping robes with a matching hat and fuzzy looking slippers. Fandarel and Reeve had at least given an effort to dress themselves, but their shirts were wrinkled and they had failed to tuck them into their pants. Roland, on the other hand, looked as if he had never gone to bed for he was still dressed in a nice tunic and looked fully alert.

"No offense, Zelda, but you look awful," Calintz said, wondering why she was even there. The woman had done nothing to fix her hair so it stuck out at odd angles quite freely, and her complexion was blotchy, causing her to look older than she really was. Her usually sharp eyes were bloodshot and slightly glazed, and he was sure that if the meeting were not before a group of men, she would not have even bothered throwing on a dress.

She took a deep breath before saying, "Your words have been noted, and I'll punish you for them later, but right now we have more pressing issues than the way I look."

Enigma motioned for the white haired knight to take a seat before he spoke. "Knights of the Crimson Tears, I have come to give you news of the mission the prince and Miss Maiya have gone on." He saw Zelda grimace, but he ignored it. "Earlier this morning, a man and a group of bulbins went to the old castle in search of Purity and Luster. I don't know who this man was, nor do I know what he wished to gain by taking the swords, but he got away with Luster and in order to ensure his escape he took a hostage."

Terence rose to his feet so fast that his knees popped and caused him to falter slightly. "Did he take Maiya?"

Enigma gently pushed the man back into his seat, but nodded all the same. "I'm afraid to say that he has. However, I tracked him to a mountain and right now Sir Orca and a few of the other Knights of the Seeking Eye are working on freeing her."

"I told you we should have sent Calintz to retrieve the Master Sword," Roland growled, pointing an accusing finger at Zelda. "Now we've lost Luster and one of our best soldiers to a lunatic."

"Don't you dare raise your voice at me," Zelda threatened, rising from her seat and looking quite menacing with her already haggard appearance. "I sent Zeke because I wanted to give him a little more responsibility. No one could have foreseen this turn of events, and I feel truly sorry that this man took Maiya, but accusing me of being a bad mother is completely inappropriate at the moment."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I completely forgot that Zeke isn't my son. Who am I to question what his mother does to him? Perhaps sending him out on a dangerous recovery mission will strengthen him and help him on his way to becoming a man."

"You're right, Roland. Zeke's _not_ your son. In spite of everything I've put him through, he has turned out to be a respectable young man and I'm proud of him. If I had known that he would encounter someone who wanted the swords I would have sent someone else, but Zeke still would have gone because he's the only one who can complete this mission successfully."

Silence. Calintz and the others quietly switched their gazes between Roland and Zelda, understanding why Zelda looked so exhausted and possibly why Roland had never bothered going to bed. The only person who seemed unaffected by this was Enigma, who continued talking despite the spat.

"Regardless of the situation," he said, snapping everyone out of their astonishment over the argument between the king and queen. "You need to fortify this castle and postpone the preparations to return to the old castle. Terence, relax. Orca will get Maiya back. Roland, chill out. Zeke can take care of himself and has on multiple occasions proved that he is more than he appears to be. The Harper, Kenji, is with him, and as we all know, Kenji is an exceptional swordsman, even if he's a little rusty.

"Now Calintz," and everyone's attention fell on the young man sitting the closest to the door. "It's time you proved that you can lead this group. What are your orders?"

Calintz scratched his head, making his messy ponytail bounce. "Well, I think it would be best if…"

"No, don't think," Enigma interrupted. "Give an order."

"Reeve, go check the watchtowers and make sure we have archers in all of them. Terence, go get dressed and rouse the other leaders of the military. Have them wake the soldiers and prepare them for an attack. Fandarel, run down to the village and ask the bartenders if any suspicious men or women have come into their bars. We might be able to catch spies that way. Roland, go to Death Mountain and Dragon Roost to inform them that an attack may be coming. They are just as at risk as we are, so warn them and if necessary help them. You will report back to me as soon as you're finished. Make no errands while you're away, and I'll know if you do." He dismissed everyone and waited for them to file out of the room. When only Zelda, Enigma, and he remained, he sighed and leaned forward, scrubbing his face vigorously to help him wake up.

"You've done well, Calintz," Enigma said.

He looked up at the cloaked man and sighed. "Go help Orca. The Knights of the Seeking Eye may be good spies, but they like to avoid conflict. If they're met with a sizeable resistance they will be more likely to run than stay and fight."

To Zelda's surprise, Enigma bowed and said, "As you wish." Giving Zelda a quick glance, he burst into a cloud of leaves that fell on the furniture and floor of the office.

Zelda stood up and started to walk towards the door. "I'll let Roland clean that up when he gets back."

"What was that about?" Calintz asked, stopping Zelda in mid-step. "The last time I saw you like this it was when you found out that you were pregnant with Zeke." He looked up at the queen with what he hoped was a concerned gaze, but he was always worried that he was incapable of such expressions.

With a sigh, Zelda said, "Zeke got hurt and Roland, trying to be the good stepfather, tried to convince me to send someone else to get the sword and to bring Zeke home." She crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "He doesn't know Zeke. That boy wouldn't let me bring him home even if I wanted to. He'd take it as an insult, and he would never forgive me. With an already damaged relationship, I don't want to push him so far away that he'll never want to come home."

"I take it you're ready to apologize then?" Calintz recoiled when Zelda turned on him, but was relieved when she gave his head a pat.

"I'm ready to be his mother, Calintz," she said with a smile. "Now would you do me a favor and go to him?"

"I thought you didn't want to bring him home."

"I don't. I want you to make sure he's okay. He's developed a soft spot for that girl, and I want to make sure he's still sane. Enigma said that Zeke and Kenji are going to Lon Lon Ranch. Just go there with the excuse that you were checking up on that girl who appeared the other day."

* * *

"Zeke, do you feel that?" Sakura asked as they were nearing the stables, hoping Enigma had put his and Maiya's horses there.

"Feel what?" Zeke slowed to a quick walk, earning a confused look from Kenji.

Sakura leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "I feel fairy magic."

"A fairy fountain?" he asked, but he never got an answer to the question. He had stepped into the stables, but the wooden floor at his feet gave away and he fell through. Everything went black, but Zeke was positive that he had not gone blind because he could see Kenji staring down at him from a small hole above him.

"Are you okay, your highness?" he called down, trying to see Zeke at the bottom.

"I'm okay," Zeke answered, painfully rising to his feet. Though he had been healed, his sword wound was still tender and the fall had aggravated it. In the little light that came through the hole above him, he found a square panel similar to the one he had seen when he and Maiya had discovered the fairy fountain, but with one main difference. This one was old and cracked. "Sakura, please tell me this thing still works."

The fairy examined it, but her body language was far from comforting. With her wings slightly drooped, she said, "Sorry, but the magic that enchanted this has long since diminished. It will not carry you like the other one did."

Zeke looked up at Kenji and told him to find some rope to lower down into the hole. "While I'm down here I'm going to look around though."

"I mean you no disrespect, Prince Zeke, but we need to get going."

"Relax. I know what I'm doing." With it being dark, Zeke was cautious about where he stepped. It was very possible that he was in a large cavern that had bottomless pitfalls all around him, so he had to rely on Sakura to tell him what she could see.

"It is okay, Zeke," she said, hovering in front of him to try and light up the cavern. "This place is just like the other one, but there is no chest and I see no way of getting closer to the fairy magic."

"But you _do_ feel it strongly, right?"

"Yes."

Wishing he had Maiya standing next to him to offer him comfort, he stepped forward and searched for a wall he could walk along. "Tell me where you feel it the strongest and we'll try to find a way through the wall." Sakura pointed to his right and flew over to float by the wall, guiding him to her. Though there were no pitfalls, there were still potholes that he could get his feet stuck in or break his ankles in if he was really unfortunate. When he finally made contact with the wall, he heard Kenji return to the hole.

"I found rope and a torch," he said, dropping the torch into the cave. "I'm going to go secure the rope so you can climb out."

Zeke waited for the rope to drop down before saying, "Come on down. There's something you should see."

"What is it?"

"A fairy fountain." He saw Kenji pull up the rope a little bit and took hold of it, jumping feet first into the hole. Sliding down the rope, he quickly reached the bottom and picked up the torch, jumping over potholes to where Zeke stood.

"A fairy fountain, you say?"

"Yeah, you could write a song about it or something." Pressing his hands against the wall, he felt it give a little. Taking a step back, he kicked at the wall as hard as he could, causing the stone to break upon contact. Light filled the cavern as the wall fell apart, and Zeke was happy to see a white stone walkway with water on both sides of it.

Carefully stepping over the shards of the wall, Zeke quickly ran over to where the golden Triforce shown brightly in the white stone. Retrieving his flute from inside his shirt, he played the Hylian Lullaby and waited.

"_What do you want?_" a female voice asked, her bored sounding alto reverberating off of the walls.

Zeke stood up as straight as he could and said with as much confidence as he could muster, "Anything you are willing to give us."

The water in the fountain before them started to swirl and created a whirlpool. A head popped out of the whirlpool and regarded the two humans and the fairy standing before her fountain. "Who are you?" she asked, unwilling to reveal anything more than her head.

"I am Zeke, prince of Hyrule. This is Kenji, journeyman of the Harper Hall. With us is a guardian fairy from the forest who goes by the name of Sakura."

The great fairy rolled her eyes and fully emerged from the whirlpool. From the way her turquoise hair was styled to the sage style shades on her nose to the modest way she dressed, it was clear that this great fairy was a wise being. "A prince, a Harper, and a fairy…" Looking up at the ceiling, she gestured to the three and said, "Is this your idea of a joke? I ask you to send me company and you send me two adolescences and a freaking fairy? Why didn't you just send me a bunny or something less humiliating?"

"I beg your pardon?" Sakura said, flying up to float in front of the great fairy's face. "What do you have against humans and fairies?"

"Nothing, little fairy. I had asked the Goddesses to send me a stunning and intelligent man to keep me company, that's all. These children wouldn't know how to stimulate my mind if their lives depended on it." Shaking her head and massaging her left temple, she said, "Where are my manners? I am Kendra. Welcome to my fountain. What can I do yah for?"

Zeke scratched his head and smiled gingerly. "Well, we didn't exactly come here to ask for anything."

Kendra scowled down at him crossed her arms. "Then how am I to help you? I can give you anything you desire. Knowledge, power, magical gifts, anything. Just name something."

Kenji bowed low to the fairy and said, "Miss Kendra, if it is not too much to ask, I would like you to take these swords and fix them to fit me a little better. They are magnificent examples of twin swords, but they are not made for me and I intend on keeping them."

Making a grabbing motion with her hand, Kendra drew the swords from their sheathes using her magic and examined the blades for a moment. "These were made by Sir Grogh, Knight of the Crimson Tears. I can do nothing to improve their quality with my limited magic, but I can resize them and make them lighter for you." The swords started to glow with a green light and they started to change slightly. "That should do the trick."

Kenji accepted the swords gratefully.

"What about you, prince?"

Zeke thought long and hard about what he could use. There was no physical thing that he needed. Although, with his sword broken he would need a new weapon or he would only be a hindrance in his own adventure. "Kendra, could you make me a new sword?"

"Why? You have a sword right there." When Zeke continued to stare at her, she said, "I can only make a sword if you present me with the materials for it. I cannot magically make one out of thin air."

Groaning, Zeke crossed his arms and thought of something else. "I wish to know about Sri Tessla and the fourth force."

Kendra's lips slowly curled into a wicked smile. "You've encountered Lily I take it."

"Yes, I have."

"Very well," she said, raising her hand to bring up the water around the walkway. "Lily's knowledge of that is very limited, and she often complains that she was given useless knowledge to pass on, but I know a bit more and I can tell you that the knowledge is not useless. Listen carefully, child, for this may be the most important thing you ever hear.

"Long ago, when Din, Farore, and Nayru descended from the Sacred Realm to shape the land of Hyrule and the surrounding areas, there was a being that went by the name of Sri Tessla. She was not a relative of the Goddesses, but even so she possessed an amazing power that matched theirs in potency. Sri is not part of her name, rather it is a title. In the Sacred Realm, there are many different divine beings. There are angels, Seras, Seraphs, and many others. Each is special in their own way, and every single one of them helped create the world we inhabit today. The Sri are the beings who, with the help of the Goddesses, created magic and made the rules for which magic abides.

"The Goddesses liked the idea of magic, and gave it to all the creatures in this world. Tessla, on the other hand, disliked it. Even though she was one of the beings chosen to monitor the use of magic, she hated the fact that it was being passed to beings such as humans who were susceptible to temptation and would most likely misuse the gift. In an attempt to end corruption before it started, she descended to Hyrule and, one by one, drained humans of their magic. This is why some people are better at performing magic than others. She permanently affected families with her vampirism.

"Discovering this, she was stripped of her powers and condemned to live in our world. She's immortal, so she still walks around today, however none know where she is. In order to preserve a portion of her power, she created the fourth force out of the purest crystal she could get her hands on. By breaking it into seven pieces, she thought that she could prevent anyone from taking it, and luckily no one has. If someone were to assemble all of the pieces, not only would Tessla die but that person would also be given immeasurable power. This crystal force has been deemed the fourth force, and it fits in the center of the Triforce."

"What makes it so special if it only grants power?" Zeke asked, looking at a crystal triangle that was being projected by the wall of water. "There are many objects in Hyrule that can grant immense power. What makes this crystal force so different?"

Kendra laughed and filled the chamber with her horrible amusement. "They say that the crystal force possesses the power of all three pieces of the Triforce. Sri Tessla wanted to make sure she would remain powerful for all eternity, and to combine the powers of the Triforce would be the ultimate way of preserving herself. Understand?"

Zeke nodded and cleared his throat, hesitating in asking his next question. "Kendra, this sword burns my hand whenever I touch its hilt," he said as he indicated the Master Sword. "Why does it do this?"

Becoming serious, Kendra stared at the sword fearfully. "The Master Sword can only be held by those who have been deemed worthy of wielding it. Either you harbor some darkness in your heart, or you have yet to prove yourself to it."

Though he did not like what he was told, he was forced to accept the knowledge, thanking the fairy for her help.

"And now you, little bug." Kendra turned her attention to Sakura. "What is it you want?" Sakura flew up and whispered something into her ear. "That's quite a desire. Are you sure that is what you want?"

"Yes, it is."

"Well then, be blessed."

The whole chamber became engulfed in white light, blinding Kenji and Zeke to everything around them. A low chant echoed all around them, and both thought that Sakura might have asked the great fairy to kill them. Behind their closed eyes and the hands they threw in front of their faces to further shield them from the light they could see multicolored lights, but did not dare open their eyes to see them without their eyelids being in the way.

"_The greatest gift I can possibly give you, young Sakura, is your heart's greatest desire. Open your eyes and be blissful for your fortune._"

Kenji and Zeke opened their eyes and looked around for Sakura, wondering what her heart's greatest desire was. "Sakura? Where are you?" Zeke asked.

"I am right here," said a bundle of clothes on the floor. Sakura stood up and looked down at herself, laughing happily. Twirling around, she thanked Kendra with a long string of praise that came out faster than Zeke or Kenji could register.

"Sakura, you're…human," Zeke finally managed to say. Sakura was indeed human. She stood about as high as his shoulder, and was the embodiment of adorable. Her dark brown hair fell down to her waist, and her matching eyes were almond shaped. From what Zeke could tell, she was a larger version of what she used to be, but with her being bigger he could see things that he had missed before, like how her nose was slightly pointed and how dimples appeared when she smiled. The only thing missing were her wings, and she did not seem to miss them one bit.

She stopped spinning and smiled up at Zeke with a toothy grin, jumping up and hugging him tightly. "Now you can really say that I am your sister! I cannot wait for Maiya to see me like this!"

The prince found himself smiling along with the girl and let himself laugh joyously. "You're quite a pretty little thing, aren't you?"

"She doesn't seem to mind that I made her short," Kendra said with an annoyed twitch. "Fairies these days just don't know how to set standards."

"I was rather small for a fairy anyway," Sakura said in a matter of fact tone.

Kendra rolled her eyes and raised her hands high. "Oh be joyous for good fortune smiles upon you, blah blah blah, yada yada. Get out of my sight, I'm sick of the lot of you." Twirling her finger, the pool of water started to swirl again and she disappeared into the whirlpool.

"Let's get going," Kenji said, turning towards the back of the chamber. "If we hurry we'll be in time for breakfast at the ranch."


	20. Chapter 20: Regretted Treachery

Chapter 20: Regretted Treachery

"Well, well, if it isn't Sir Calintz," Malon said with a wry smile. "What brings you to my ranch?"

Calintz shifted his feet nervously. Dealings with Malon had always been uncomfortable for him, and on a few occasions he was surprised that he came out unscathed and as much of himself as he had been before meeting with the woman. "I am here to check in on Ciel and Chris," he said authoritatively, strengthening his posture to make it look more official. "However, it is early and I would understand if they have yet to rise."

Malon gave him the most seductive smile he had ever seen on the woman's face and felt a wave of unease run through his nerves. "You came to see me, didn't you?" She laughed when his eyes widened with shock and she ushered him inside. "I'm just kidding. I know that you knights are early risers. Take a seat, I'm cooking breakfast right now and it'll be done pretty soon." She went into the kitchen and disappeared from sight, leaving Calintz alone in the living room. "Just make yourself at home in there."

Instead of taking a seat in one of the comfortable looking sitting chairs, he took one of the wooden chairs from around the table and, turning it around so his sword would not get caught in the hole of the back, sat down just outside of the kitchen where he would be out of the way, but within respectable earshot distance so he could carry on a conversation with Malon. "I take it you all arrived without incident?" he asked.

"Oh yeah," she answered, tossing potato shavings into a skillet so she could make something to complement the rest of the meal. "That boy Kenji was a big help, but Ciel and Chris needed a little bit of instruction to get into the groove of things. Chris spent most of his time talking to a cow, which was quite frightening, but I've seen worse on a ranch."

Knowing he was going to regret it before he said it, he asked, "What about Ciel? How is she doing?"

Malon looked over at the knight and smiled. "Found yourself a woman, did you?"

"Why does everyone say that? Seriously, I heard that three times the day I met Ciel. What's the big deal?" Calintz watched as the woman cracked five cucco eggs with one hand in a matter of seconds, waiting for an answer.

"You're kind of naïve, aren't you, knight?" He asked her what she meant and she just shook her head and chuckled. "You're a really good looking guy, Calintz. On top of that, you're a righteous knight whose goal is to safeguard everything we hold dear. Any girl would be lucky to have you." She paused and carefully picked out the words for her next sentence. "You take your job very seriously, and that's respectable, but people often wonder if you ever get to do anything enjoyable, or at least something you like. I know I speak for a good handful of people when I say that we hope you'll find a woman so you'll have someone else you can serve in a different way. While we all appreciate what you do for Hyrule, it would be nice to see you serve a woman you really care about. Y'know?"

"That's it? They think I take my job too seriously?" he asked, astonished that it was something that he thought was stupid.

"In a manner of speaking, yes."

Keeping a hold of his temper, Calintz said, "I decided when I became a knight that the day I found a significant other would be the same day I put down my sword. I don't want to start a family just to go out and die for my country."

Malon reached into her sink, grabbed a spatula, and flung it at the knight, hitting him in the forehead. "By the time you set your sword down you'll be too old to even have a family. Take some advice from a woman who once loved a knight. Don't be so stupid as to wait for all the problems in the world to cease. You'll die sad and lonely."

"You're one to talk," said Talon as he walked in through the kitchen door, walking over to peer over his daughter's shoulder to see what she was cooking. "You're in your thirties and you've yet to find a man who you want to settle down with."

With a precision that was frightening, Malon tossed an egg over her shoulder and hit her father in the face. "We've been over this, dad. I haven't found the right man yet, but I _am_ looking. It should be easy now. I'm in my prime, so there's got to be someone who wants me."

Talon went to a basin of clean water and cleaned his face off. He looked at Calintz and gave him a wink. "Maybe you should just marry my daughter and get the whole mess over with."

"Don't listen to him Calintz," Malon said sternly. "Find yourself a young and healthy girl who has a nice personality and you hold onto her for the rest of your life. You deserve someone who can appreciate you for who and what you are. Stay away from girls like me who are sarcastic and will make fun of you whenever we get a chance."

Calintz stared at the two with a bland gaze, his grey eyes narrowed just slightly to show his indifference to the advice. "Thanks for the love advice, you two. I really appreciate it," he said sarcastically.

"Sir Calintz?"

The white haired knight turned and saw Ciel descending the stairs to the second level, and out of habitual respect stood up hastily, knocking the chair over. "Miss Ciel. How goes your morning?" Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Malon and her father mocking him, but he ignored them to preserve his constitution.

Ciel reached the bottom of the stairs and went to Calintz, offering her hand to him. "I just woke up, so not well. I always look awful in the morning."

Calintz took the hand and, instead of shaking it like he normally would have, bent down and kissed it. "You should give yourself a little more credit. You look exceptionally pretty today."

"Are you feeling okay?" Ciel asked, raising an eyebrow. "You've never said anything about the way I look before." Looking over at Malon, she scowled and said, "Did you put him up to this?"

Malon shook her head and smiled. "That is all him."

Reaching up with her hand, Ciel gave Calintz a soft smack on the cheek. "Wake up and quit dreaming about prettier girls. It's me you're talking to, not a supermodel."

Calintz frowned as the girl walked away from him to help in the kitchen. "Just accept the damn compliment."

"Come on, Ciel," Malon said as she threw some meat into another skillet. "He came all this way just to see you, so be a little nicer to the man." She gave Calintz an exaggerated wink and started humming to herself.

The girl turned to look at the knight, her antennae bouncing comically. "Is that so? Well he's seen me so he has no business remaining here," she said with an uninterested tone. "Honestly, Sir Calintz, you should really manage your time a little better so you're doing something more productive than 'seeing' girls. I'm pretty sure that the queen would disapprove of your behavior."

"Ouch," Talon said, laughing. "I aint heard a hide tannin' like that in nearly twenty years."

Mortified, Calintz could only stand there with a traumatized look on his face. _Zelda, you owe me big time for this_. While he found Ciel interesting and actually quite attractive, he did not have any sort of feelings for the girl. Despite this, having all three of the people in the kitchen teasing him was far from enjoyable, and, not being used to such treatment, could think of nothing to counter or shake off the comments.

In order to avoid any further torment, he started to move towards the door, picking up his chair and placing it back at the table as he did. "Where yah goin', Mr. High and Mighty Knight?" Ciel asked, poking her head out of the kitchen to look for him. "Leaving already?"

Looking back over his shoulder, Calintz said, "Not entirely. I just need some fresh air."

Ciel shrugged, tilting her head to the side as she did so. "Alright. I'll give you a verbal whippin' when you get back then."

Stepping out into the morning air was quite stimulating for Calintz. Taking a deep breath of the chilly air, he looked out at the pasture where the cattle were grazing contently. Sitting on the fence and talking to one of the cows was Chris, still dressed in his pajamas. Calintz wondered what a teenage boy talks to a cow about and meandered over to see.

"Well, there's this girl back home, her name's Izumi. She's Japanese and really nice, although she's a bit of an oddball. I can see myself marrying her someday."

"Moo."

Chris laughed and said, "I don't see why you can't come. Mom would laugh, that's for sure."

"Good morning, Chris." Calintz said, hopping onto the fence to sit next to the short boy. "How long have you been out here?"

"Long before you got here," he answered, scratching his cow behind the ears. "Ciel talks in her sleep every now and then, so if I wake up too early on one of those mornings when she does I'll never get back to sleep because I'm stuck listening to her talk, and I can't tune it out either because I have A.D.D."

"You have "add"?"

"Attention Deficit Disorder, it's an acronym. I can't focus on things very easily, and it's really hard for me to ignore stuff.

Calintz nodded his understanding. "So, did you hear anything embarrassing this morning when Ciel was talking?"

Chris looked up at the knight with an inquisitive stare. "Why?" Calintz explained what had transpired in the kitchen and asked if Chris knew anything that he could use against the blonde girl. "Nope. Even if I did, you'd never be able to get under her skin," he said, stretching. "Ciel is like an armored fortress. Words do nothing but bounce off of her. Even if something embarrasses her, she can shirk it off and get you with something worse. It's kind of a talent of hers."

"I'll just have to find another way to get back at her then."

"Be careful," Chris warned. "If you go too far she'll hurt you."

Calintz spotted three horses approaching from a distance and hopped off of the fence. "Thanks for the warning. I've got to go attend to something, so have fun talking to your cow." Running down the dirt road leading up to the ranch, Calintz intermittently used Farore's Wind to cover more ground, but was careful not to focus too far ahead to avoid intersecting with a horse and splicing them together. As he got closer, he could make out Zeke's face and gave a sigh of relief._ He's all right_.

"Zeke, it's good to see you're okay," Calintz said as he approached the group, turning when he was next to Zeke and walking alongside the horse. "You gave us all quite a scare."

Zeke frowned and looked down at the knight. "Who told you something happened?"

"Enigma came to warn us that we might be attacked in the future and wanted us to fortify the castle."

"I see." He was relieved to hear that Enigma had gone to warn the castle, that gave him one less thing to do when he finally returned to the castle, but it also meant that he had failed to save Maiya. "Did he say anything about Maiya?"

Calintz nodded. "He said that the Knights of the Seeking Eye were put on the job of rescuing her, but I told him to go back because we all know what cowards the Seeking Eye are." He went on to explain the condition of the castle, saying that everything was well and in order. "With the exception of the attack warning, everything seems to be transitioning smoothly."

"That's good to hear," Zeke said, cataloguing the information for future reference. "How…how is my mother doing?" On several occasions he had spoken to Calintz about many of his issues and it felt odd to ask the man about the person who caused him so much grief. For some reason he was pleased to hear that she was well and happy, but he ruined it for himself by thinking that she was happy because he was gone from the castle.

"What is for breakfast?" Sakura asked from behind Zeke, groaning when her stomach growled with such intensity that the prince could feel it.

"Who is this?" Calintz asked, having not noticed the girl before.

"This is Sakura," Zeke said, explaining how she was once a fairy and had recently become a human with the help of a great fairy. "I've kind of adopted her into my family, so I hope mom will be accepting. We don't know exactly how old she is, but I'm guessing that in human years she would be around the same age as myself."

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you, Sakura," Calintz said, smiling up at the girl. "And for your information, Malon is preparing a lovely meal of bacon, eggs, grilled potato shavings, and cooked ham. It looks delicious."

"Now that you're bigger, you're going to need to eat a little more than you have been," Zeke said, patting the girl's hand. "But try not to over eat or you'll get sick."

"Food sounds really good right now," Kenji said dazedly. "And after that, I'm going to take a nice long nap."

Zeke laughed, but only halfheartedly because he felt bad for the Harper. "Poor Kenji hasn't slept in nearly five days now. It's a wonder how he's still alive."

*

"Prince Zeke, I am honored to have you in my home," Malon said with a bow. "You've arrived just in time for breakfast too. And Kenji, you look horrible. Did you get to sleep at all last night?"

"No, ma'am. We ran into some trouble at the castle and I never got the chance to sleep." Kenji slumped into a chair at the table and picked up a fork expectantly.

Zeke gave Malon a hug and smiled cheerfully. "It's nice to see you, Malon. I haven't seen a familiar face in almost two weeks." Malon pushed him into a chair at the table, muttering something about him being too thin and going about placing food on the table. Turning to Sakura, Zeke ran her through a brief lesson on table etiquette, telling her that she had to use silverware instead of her hands, among other things. "Try not to burp, and if you do excuse yourself."

"Why? Everyone does it. It is a normal bodily function."

"Because it's polite." Zeke gave the girl a pat on the head and smiled, trying to encourage her. Teaching Sakura about manners was like déjà vu for him. When he was thirteen he taught his sister Faye the same things, thinking that if she was impolite that his mother would start to hate her too, but he quickly learned that manners had nothing to do with his mother's dislike for him.

"So you're Queen Zelda's son?" Ciel asked, taking a seat across from Zeke. "No offense, but you don't really look like your mom." Zeke shrugged and explained how he took after his grandmother who also had red hair and green eyes, but this was not the only thing the girl seemed to think was odd. "How old are you?" He said that he was seventeen as of a week before. "How old is your mother?"

"She'll be thirty-four in a month. Why?" Ciel furrowed her brow as she tried to do an equation in her head, but Zeke realized what she was getting at and sighed, doing it for her. "She was a month shy of seventeen when she had me. I was born to a teenage mother who wasn't married."

Ciel was horrified by this and quickly apologized for her insensitive questions. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…I had no idea…" Zeke held a hand up and silenced her instantly.

"It's quite alright. It happened and there's nothing that can be done to change it."

"Yes you did, Ciel," Calintz said as he took a seat next to her. "I told you on the day we met that Zeke and I shared that in common. It's great to know that you were paying attention." They shared a scornful gaze that drew laughter from Talon and Malon, who took seats on both ends of the table.

Zeke stared at the two curiously. _Calintz seems to like her_. The two stopped looking at each other, but Ciel punched him in the shoulder when he looked over at Kenji. Ciel pretended to be innocent, but Zeke wondered how that would help her when it was obvious that she was the one who hit him. Calintz laughed at something Kenji said and stretched his back, smacking Ciel in the back of the head when he was bringing his hands down. It was hard not to laugh.

_Is that proper table etiquette_? Sakura asked, using their special connection that Zeke was surprised they still had.

_No, but they're probably settling an argument or something they had earlier. It's all right as long as they're not disrupting anyone_. Sakura voiced her confusion over it, but started to laugh after Ciel had offered to serve Calintz something and purposefully dumped it in his lap.

_They are funny_.

And so breakfast went with everyone getting a fair share of laughter with their meal. If asked, they would say the best part of breakfast was watching Calintz push Ciel's face into the bowl of scrambled eggs, and then seeing Ciel smile up at him sweetly with egg all over her face before jumping on him and taking him to the floor where she proceeded to try and hurt him.

"That's enough, children," Malon said, stifling her laughter with her napkin. "Finish eating before you pummel each other please."

Calintz and Ciel returned to their chairs, looking away from each other. Calintz turned his attention to Zeke and asked Zeke about his wound, switching his informer's name with Enigma's. "I heard from Enigma that you got hurt. He made it sound like it was pretty bad, but you appear to be fine."

Zeke grinned and stood up, lifting his shirts and chain mail to expose his middle. "Maiya and I got into a tussle a couple days ago and she accidentally put a sword through me." He pointed out the sword's entry point and then turned around to show where it exited his body. "It was the single most painful thing I've ever experienced. It hurt so much that I couldn't even scream."

Everyone at the table grimaced and begged him to put his shirt down. "Your mother won't be too happy to hear about that," Malon said just soft enough to avoid Zeke hearing her.

After everyone had finished eating, Zeke pulled Calintz aside and asked if he would do him a favor. "Calintz, I don't plan on returning home."

"What are you talking about? You need to finish your mission."

Zeke shook his head. "There's something I feel I need to do, and I need to get started immediately. I can't tell you what it is, but it's important."

The white haired knight sighed and crossed his arms. "What, do you want me to deliver the Master Sword to your mom for you, is that it?" The look Zeke gave him was far from comforting, and he felt a strange emotion tugging at his heart. "Right, Zeke?"

"Actually, I want you to deliver Purity to mom," he said, scratching his head. "And there's something else."

*

"Stupid Calintz," Ciel mumbled. She had been given the task of washing the dishes, and she relished the task because she could pretend that the food on the plates and silverware was really just colonies of a million white haired knights that would die if scrubbed. "Oh no," she said in a quiet high pitched voice that she used to represent the imaginary Calintz colonies. "Ciel's scrubbing us to death. Woe is us for putting her face in the egg bowl. What were we thinking? How could we have angered the Goddess Ciel who is the greatest being in all of the land?"

"Now she's talking to herself. She must be losing her mind."

Ciel turned around and saw Calintz standing on the edge of the kitchen. "What do _you_ want?" she asked, flinging water at him when she pointed her finger at him. "I'm a little busy if you haven't noticed. Go do your knight stuff and leave me be."

Calintz scowled. "I wanted to say good bye because I have to leave," he said, his voice lined with irritation. "I thought you'd want to know."

"What do you want, a hug or something?"

Throwing his hands in the air, Calintz growled to release some of the anger he was starting to feel. "Why did I even bother?" He turned to leave, but Ciel called him back.

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked, casting him a cold stare. "Get over here." She waited until he was within arms reach before looking up at him with a smile. "It was nice seeing you again," she said quietly so only he could hear her. The expression of confusion on his face made her laugh, and because of that she gave him a hug. "You're so much fun to mess with."

"You were just playing around?"

"Yup. Got a problem with that?" She gave him a playful stare and said, "Whenever you're not too busy at the castle be sure to drop by. You can help me with whatever Malon has me doing." Turning back to do her dishes, she looked at him and said, "What are you still doing here? Get going."

Calintz shook his head and headed for the kitchen door. "I'll be seeing you soon."

"Later, babe," she said with a toothy grin. After he had left, Ciel sighed and smiled. "Stupid Calintz."

* * *

Zelda sat up straight when she saw Calintz standing in the entrance of the throne room. "Sir Calintz, what news do you have for me?" she asked, smiling in anticipation of a good report. Because of the guards stationed in the throne room, she chose to speak formally to the knight, but her smile was one that only someone she knew very well would see. As he came closer to her, Zelda noticed that something seemed off. The white haired knight was distracted and appeared quite troubled. Normally apathetic, if Calintz was disturbed by something then good news could not be further from his mind. "Sir Calintz, what's wrong?"

Stopping at a safe distance from the queen, Calintz bowed low. "I'm sorry, your majesty, but my news is not good." His lips moved, but no words could come. Instead of speaking, he threw a bloodied tunic and a broken sword to the ground at Zelda's feet.

With a frown, Zelda picked up the tunic and ran a hand over the fabric, sliding her fingers down the length of a long rip in the front. "What is this?" she asked, bending down to pick up a piece of the sword.

"These don't look familiar to you?" Calintz asked.

She shook her head and held the sword loosely. "This looks like the type of sword you use. Unique to the warrior's of Zephyr, yet detailed with the head of a dragon that would place it in the forge of a goron." Examining the sword, she went on to say that the person who had wielded it was of good height and, judging by a few of the nicks in the blade, the person fought in a way that had probably been the reason why the blade had broken.

"Zelda, these were Zeke's."

"Really? That's interesting. How did he break his sword? Let me guess, he got too enthusiastic while fighting Maiya and didn't know that edge to edge sword fighting was bad for the blade, right?" When Calintz failed to answer, she looked up at him and studied his body language. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

_Zeke, I'm going to kill you the next time I see you_. "Zelda, Zeke's dead," he shouted, his patience finally gone. "He died after Enigma left the castle to warn us. A bulbin cut him open while he was mourning the loss of Maiya, and Kenji was unable to get there in time. Your son is gone." His voice gave away on the last word, and Zelda felt all the blood in her body freeze.

"What…did you just say?" Their eyes met, but Calintz just shook his head and refused to say it again. "No…" Clutching the blood stained tunic to her chest, she was wracked with more pain than she had ever endured before. In her chest, her heart ached with such intensity that she thought it had exploded and that soon she would drop dead. Tears started to surge down her cheeks and her face started to redden, yet despite all of this she spoke with a control that astounded. "What else do you know about this?"

Unwrapping the bundle he had been carrying, he held the hilt of Purity out for Zelda to take. "He asked Kenji to make sure this was given to you."

Ignoring the sword, the only thing Zelda wanted was to hold her son's possessions. "Thank you, Sir Calintz, for informing me." Turning to the ever-present guards, she said, "Please leave me and Sir Calintz alone so we can discuss this matter in private."

"Your majesty, with all due respect, it is our job to be here," one of the guards said, shifting his feet nervously. "We might get reprimanded by our C.O. if he discovers us away from our post."

"And you'll be thrown out of my castle if you ignore my orders," Zelda said threateningly, glaring at the man who had dared speak to her. "No commanding officer is above me, and my orders are not to be questioned. Leave now, and close the doors on your way out." Her eyes followed the four knights all the way to the door of the throne room, watching them as they closed the doors. As soon as the doors had clicked shut she took a deep breath that Calintz thought would help settle her nerves, but after she appeared to be fine she shocked the knight by letting out a horrible, blood curdling scream with such intensity that the stained glass window above the throne resounded with a deafening crack that split the images on the glass's surface in half.

Calintz covered his ears to soften the shriek, but was unable to mute it entirely. The sound chilled his body and stopped his heart from beating. He was positive that this was the most horrific sound he would ever hear in his lifetime.

When her screaming subsided, Zelda's mouth was filled with the taste of blood and her abdomen and lungs hurt from how hard she had voiced the pain she felt. Weary and drained, she fell to her knees and then to her side. Calintz rushed to help her, worried that she might have ruptured an artery or a vein. She started to sob and curled up into a tight ball, wanting reality to leave her alone.

* * *

Kenji shook Zeke's hand and said, "It was a pleasure meeting you, but what, might I ask, are you going to do?"

"I'm going searching for answers," Zeke replied, climbing onto his horse and seating himself behind Sakura. "Remember, if anyone asks you, I'm dead."

"Right." Kenji paused before asking, "But what if they ask for the whereabouts of your body?" The question hung in the air for a moment before Zeke told him to be creative. "Oh, thanks. I appreciate that you're placing so much merit to my name."

"You're a Harper. Think like one. Anyway, we've got to get going." Zeke turned his horse towards the entrance of the ranch and waved farewell to everyone. "We'll make everything right after this is all over, right Sakura?"

The small girl shrugged. "I do not know what questions you want answers for, so I cannot give you an answer. For all I know you want to find the answer to the meaning of life, and that would take you an eternity to discover."

"Ever the optimist," he muttered, pulling out a map. "I don't know where to even begin, but I want to know more about the Master Sword and the Triforce. Somehow, they're both related to this whole "fourth force" thing."

"Why do you want to know about that?"

"I don't know, but it's important to me. Why else would something mythical come up twice, and from great fairies to boot? Somehow I know that this is important." Making sure to guard his thoughts from her, he said in his head, _Because I want the power of the fourth piece so I can become stronger than everyone else in the land. Then I'll be able to protect Maiya, and no one will ever defeat me again._

*

As they were sitting around the fire that night, Zeke decided to look at the pictographs Orca had given him. If Roland wanted him to see them then he thought they might have something to do with the Crimson Tears, but he was wrong. The first picture was of his mother and a small baby, and they were both smiling merrily. "Sakura, come take a look at this," he said, a small grin appearing on his face.

"What is it?" she asked, sitting down next to him and looking over at the picture. "Aw, who is the cute baby?"

"That's me."

"Oh." Her astonishment was replaced with a worried expression. "What happened to you?" His face became frozen in a dumb way and Sakura laughed. "I am joking. You still look quite handsome."

Together they viewed the pictographs. Sakura was constantly commenting on them, but Zeke heard little of what she said. In every picture the focus was on him and his mother, and a continuing theme of happiness was always present. One of them was of his mother napping while he was sleeping on top of her. She was lounging on a couch and a steady stream of drool was flowing from her mouth and onto the pillow she was using while he was positioned in a similar fashion, drooling onto his mother's dress.

Another that made him smile was a picture of when he was around two. For some reason, his mother was sitting and making funny faces at him, but he was laughing so hard that his face was the same color as his hair. There were a few more pictographs that were of the same moment, but his mother would have a different funny face on.

Of all the pictographs, there was one that Zeke liked more than the others. It was not ridiculous like some, nor was it funny like others. His mother was holding him while he was sleeping, and the smile she had for her son was one of pure adoration. Setting the pictographs down, Zeke started to berate himself for ordering Calintz to tell his mother that he was dead.

"Zeke, it will be okay," Sakura said, reading his thoughts. "She will be so happy to see you when next you see her."

"If she's not mad that I lied." Zeke saw someone on a horse approaching their campsite and went to draw his sword. Having given Calintz his sword to back up his story, he was now using the Master Sword as his weapon. Even though it was a little longer than his previous blade and quite a bit heavier, it felt more natural to use it than the sword that was made for him. "Who's there?"

"Kenji, prince." The blonde slowed his horse to a stop by Zeke's and quickly moved to stand by the fire. "It's getting too cold for someone like me," he said, rubbing his hands together. "I'm used to being indoors, so this is a little different for me."

Zeke waited for the Harper to state his business, but Kenji made no attempt to explain himself. "I thought you were going to stay at the ranch until you finished composing your song," he said, sheathing his sword and crossing his arms.

"I was," he said, taking a seat and pulling a bundle out of his tunic that contained a meal Malon had prepared for him. "But that was before this got so big." He paused to take a bite from a roll, but shoved it into one of his cheeks like a squirrel and said, "I was sent to compose a ballad about the monumental moment of you going to the old castle. Unfortunately, the things at the castle have left me in a position where I can't finish the ballad. It would end with a cliffhanger, and in a teaching ballad a cliffhanger is an ill accepted ending. In order to finish the ballad, I need to go with you until we reach a point where I can put a heroic ending to my composition."

Taking a seat next to the Harper, Zeke sighed and said, "Did you make sure that Malon and everyone knew to say that I'm no longer living if anyone comes by to ask about me?"

"Of course. It wouldn't do to have them spoil your wonderful plan." Kenji clearly disliked the idea, but was not about to rebel against someone who could ruin his life. "However, I need to know all the details of your master plan before I can fully agree to help."

Zeke told Kenji that he wanted to look into the "fourth force" and other things that were related, including the Goddesses, Sri Tessla, and how it could affect Hyrule. He also wanted to know about Luster and Purity, and how they were related to the Master Sword. "I don't know where I'm going to find all of this information, but I can't rest until I find out what all of this means."

"I see," Kenji murmured, closing his eyes to show that he was thinking. "Well, I think the best place to find a lot of that information would be the Archives. We can go there and talk to Master Archivist Idarolan."

"We'll have to go under cover of night." Zeke was sure that after Enigma's warning it would be impossible to get into New Castle Town undiscovered. "They'll have guards at the main gate, and they'll be checking everyone so they can weed out anyone that may be an enemy. They'll find out my identity if we go that way."

They agreed to do more planning during their trip back and decided to turn in for the night. Kenji suggested staying up to keep watch incase anyone came across their camp during the night. Zeke agreed to take over watch during the morning hours and went to his tent. The last thing that went through his mind before he went unconscious was, _The crystal will be mine._


	21. Chapter 21: A Guilty Conscience

Chapter 21: A Guilty Conscience

Word that the prince of Hyrule was dead spread quickly and became the number one subject to gossip about. It had only been two days, but everyone seemed to know that Zeke had been mutilated by a vicious demon spawn that ripped out his still beating heart, or so the latest story said. All facts surrounding the prince's murder were just speculation, but there was one thing everyone knew that was not false in any form. In bars and at dinner tables, citizens of New Castle Town were talking about the queen's absence from the throne room since she had been informed of her son's death.

"I heard from my cousin, who was on guard duty in the throne room, that after he and the other guards had been told to leave that the queen screamed so loud that it cracked the window above the throne," a man was saying to his drinking buddies.

"Can you believe this?" Reeve asked, looking around the bar with contempt. "You'd think these people were all standing right there by the way they talk."

Terence shrugged and took a swig from his mug. "There's nothing we can do about it," he said, but not without a twinge of disgust. "It's human nature to gossip, and this is the biggest thing to happen since the queen's early pregnancy. The citizens will talk about this for a few weeks and eventually exhaust their imaginations if our queen drags herself out of bed and goes about like she normally would."

"…in bed for the last two days. I don't see why she is taking it so hard, she never even liked the boy…"

"But that's not going to happen," Calintz mumbled, downing his fifth mug and burping. For the passed two days, he had spent most of his time being inebriated, trying to erase the screams from his ears. "You guys weren't there when she broke down. It was like she had lost all hope in the world. I don't think she wants to even live anymore."

Fandarel gave his young friend a pat on the back, pouring him another drink. "It'll be alright, lad," he said. "Zelda's been through worse than this, and she'll be bouncing back onto her feet in no time."

"…queen's been losing her freaking mind for the last eighteen years. It's only a matter of time before she gets us all killed because she's as useless as a one winged duck."

Scowling, Calintz spun around and shouted, "Hey! Quiet down over there or I'll have your back whipped open for your impertinence!" Everyone in the bar fell silent, just now noticing that there were four knights sitting amongst the crowd of drinkers. Turning back to his companions, Calintz started to mumble about the lack of respect in the town. "If someone had been talking like that in Zephyr they would have been flogged and left in the woods for a few days."

Conversations started up again, but they stayed low in volume out of fear. "Rest easy knowing that we can still these rumors in the military," Terence said, ducking in time to dodge a mug that had been thrown by one of two arguing men. "I myself told the soldiers that if I heard any of them talking about Zeke's death or Zelda's breakdown that I would personally string them up by their ankles and leave them to hang for a week."

"That's too good for them, Terence," Reeve growled, moving to avoid another mug. "If it were me I would have told them that they would receive twenty lashings and a week without food."

Fandarel shook his head and sighed. "Take it from someone who used to work with soldiers. They do not respond well to treatment that they deem unfair. I think Terence was wise with his words."

Someone shouted and threw a chair that struck Calintz and knocked him to the floor. Already close to falling unconscious, the chair jarred his head just enough to make him black out. Sliding out of his chair, he spilled his ale and curled up on the floor.

Reeve cracked his knuckles and stood up from his seat. "Time to bust some skulls."

"Try not to hurt them too bad, Fandarel," Terence said, rolling up his sleeves.

"I should say the same to you."

The three knights jumped into the middle of the bar brawl and started pulling people out of it, incapacitating anyone who thought they could stand up against them.

* * *

When Calintz woke up, he found himself lying in a bed in the medical wing of the castle. Lady Aurora was sitting next to him reading a book and waiting for him to come around. "I've seen Roland passed out drunk, I've dragged Fandarel out of bars, and I've even witnessed Terence jumping onto a table and belting out drinking songs, but I had always expected you, young Calintz, to be a responsible drinker." She put her book down and looked down at the knight with a disappointed expression on her face. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Ignoring the pounding in his head, Calintz sat up and even got out of bed. "I say that I have things I need to do." Belting on his sword, he started to leave the room. Lady Aurora got up and followed him to the door, hoping that Calintz was as sober as he appeared to be. "Who do I have to thank for paying the bill?"

Lady Aurora crossed her arms and smirked. "I think Fandarel got it this time, but it's about time Reeve started paying." Opening the door for him, she gave him a short bow. "If you want my advice, I say you take the day off. You've had a rough time these passed few days and you deserve a break." Much to her surprise, the knight nodded and thanked her for the advice.

"I think I'll do just that." _But first things first_. Before he had been knocked unconscious, he told himself that he would visit Zelda and try his best to console her if he could. After all, he was responsible for putting her through so much pain that she was bed ridden. When she had stopped screaming, it became apparent that she had abused her voice to the point where she could hardly talk anymore and her sobs and pleas for it to be false were hoarse and barely audible. This, on top of being distraught, made her reclusive and quiet, ignoring any company she had.

In order to prevent her from getting worse, he had kept Roland so busy with orders that he never had a chance to go to the queen. If he went to her, he just knew that he would exacerbate things by saying he had been right all along about not sending Zeke away.

"_Psst_." Calintz turned and saw Princess Faye hiding in a doorway, looking over at him with her big blue eyes.

"What can I do for you, your _highness_?" he asked, bowing down as low as he could to the little girl. It had been a big joke between them that he make an effort to appear small to her since she was a little on the petite side. He never wasted an opportunity to make a joke about her stature.

Quickly running over to him, Faye reached up and took his hand. "Walk with me and listen." Likewise, Faye never missed a chance to take advantage of her being a higher rank than the knight. "It has come to my attention that my mom has been in her room for the third morning in a row, and by the way things look she doesn't plan on coming out," she said formally, talking "down" to the knight next to her. "Now, seeing that you are the one who informed her of my brother's terrible fate, I am ordering that you take me down to the florist so I can get some flowers for her."

Despite the topic of Faye's proposal, Calintz grinned. "Well it just so happens that I was on my way to see your mother, so you are quite fortunate you ran into me at this time." He stopped walking and knelt down so that he could look her in the eye. "How do you feel about Zeke?"

Faye looked away and a small tear fell down her cheek. "I only just stopped crying." She wrapped her tiny arms around Calintz's neck and hugged him tightly. "I'm really going to miss him."

"We all are," Calintz said, returning the embrace. Rising to his full height again, he took Faye's hand and together they walked down into the town. _Flowers. Why didn't _I_ think of that?_

It was an odd sight to behold, Calintz and Faye walking into the square holding each other's hand. Faye only stood a little bit taller than Calintz's waist and her soft features made her a gem in any setting, but standing next to the emotionless knight with a short fuse was too much of a contrast to comprehend. Many stopped to look at the two, but Calintz shot them a quick glare that sent them back to work.

Entering the florist's shop, Faye ran to the counter and, standing on her tiptoes so she could be seen, said, "Excuse me, but I would like to get some flowers for my mom."

Calintz knew the girl behind the counter as the daughter of the owners, and thought she was the most pleasant person who worked in the square. She was around the same age as himself and she was one of the first people he had met the first time he had been brought to the castle. "Your majesty," she said with a smile and a quick curtsy. "I would be most happy to help you today. Do you know what kind of flowers your mother likes?"

Faye scrunched her face as she tried to remember. This gave the girl behind the counter time to greet the knight who had escorted the princess to her shop. "Welcome, Sir Calintz. Can I help you today as well?"

Pointing at Faye, Calintz said, "I'm with shrimp here." Leaning against the counter, he stared down at the princess with an impatient stare. "Hurry up and quit wasting Becca's time."

"Shut up. I'm thinking."

Becca chuckled and tucked her dark green curls behind her ears. "Just take your time, princess." Turning her attention to Calintz, she asked, "How've you been? I see you running around all the time but you never come to the shop."

"I've been pretty busy," he responded, jerking his head in the princess's direction. "Being a knight is tough business, especially when you're one of the Crimson Tears. There's a lot of pressure to perform well." He noticed that the girl had a few more accessories than the last time he had seen her, and he wondered where she had gotten them. "Where did you get the sage glasses?" Sage style glasses were specially made with small lenses that helped with reading and were often given a dark hue that was said to preserve one's sight. The lenses were fastened to a flexible metal wire that could be adjusted so the glasses could clip to the bridge of a person's nose. Due to the complicated process of making them, they were expensive and would easily exceed the average worker's budget.

"They were a gift from my aunt," Becca said. "Since I read a lot, she thought it would be good for me to have some so I don't become blind like the bats in the Archives. Take a look at that Kenji, he's only eighteen and he already wears glasses. It's a shame." Smiling down at Faye, she asked the princess if she had made up her mind yet.

Faye nodded and said, "My mom really likes red roses."

"Ah, your mom is quite the classy woman." Becca walked with Faye over to a bucket of roses that had been picked that morning. "The red rose is a very special flower. Do you know why?" When Faye shook her head, the girl explained. "It's special because it is often given to girls by boys who really like them. Of all the different colors that roses can take, none are as prized as red because it's the color of passion and love."

"Wow. I want a boy to give me a red rose," Faye said, peering into the bucket. "Can I get a dozen of them?"

"Anything for you, princess." With deft fingers, Becca plucked twelve roses from the bucket and carried them over to the counter where she tied them together with a red ribbon that she fashioned into a bow. "There you go. A dozen red roses for the queen." She handed them down to Faye who took them and cradled them in her arms. Calintz took out his wallet and asked how much they would cost. "Don't worry about it. They're a gift for the queen, and she deserves them. Especially when she's going through such a tough time as this."

"Thanks Becca. I'll try to stop by to say hello more often." Taking Faye's hand again, Calintz once again became her escort.

"She's nice," Faye murmured, looking up at Calintz. "You should marry her."

With a frown, Calintz said, "You are the last person I'm going to take that kind of advice from."

*

They stopped outside the door that led to the living quarters of the queen and her family, and Faye handed the flowers to Calintz. "You should be the one to give her the flowers," she said quickly.

"Why is that?"

"Because you were the one who gave her the bad news. She already loves me, so if I give them to her she'll just say 'Aw, thank you, Faye. You're so sweet.' But if _you_ give them to her, it'll be like you're apologizing for being a big jerk."

Confused by the girl's logic, he just rolled his eyes and opened the door. The royalty suite was quite different from the rest of the castle. While a lot of rooms in the castle that had been made to be accommodations had to be furnished for all occasions, the suite had multiple rooms for the queen and her family that was set up like a regular house. Calintz had never been in this part of the castle, and was quite intrigued by its layout.

Following the princess, he entered the home and, closing the door behind him, went in search of the room Zelda was occupying. Faye stopped at a door and reached up to turn the knob, but the door was locked. "Why would she lock the door?"

"Avert your eyes," Calintz ordered. "A princess doesn't need to learn this." Pulling an instrument out of the bottom of his belt knife, he knelt down and started fiddling with the lock. When it clicked, he motioned for Faye to go ahead and open the door.

Zelda's room was quite plain and rather small much to the knight's surprise. The only furnishing was a desk that sat in a corner of the room with a multitude of pictographs on it. The queen was a bit more conservative than he had expected. The only overly elegant object in the room was the Purity Sword, and that sat on a stand near the door.

Faye ran over to the bed and shook the lump that Calintz only knew was Zelda due to the hand that was sticking out of the covers. "Mom, wake up. It's Faye."

"Mommy can't play right now," Zelda said, sounding groggy. Lifting her head from her pillow, she blinked a couple times to clear her vision and smiled at her daughter. "But if you're feeling tired you can join me."

The princess climbed onto the bed with her mom and happily accepted the hug she was given. "You have a visitor, mom."

Zelda turned her gaze to the door and saw Calintz standing just outside the door. "Well don't just stand there. If you went to the trouble of picking the lock then you should at least come in."

Grabbing a chair on his way over to his queen, Calintz sat down next to the bed and handed the flowers to Zelda. "Faye and I got you these," he said with a soft smile. "How are you feeling?" Zelda looked better than she had in the throne room, but there was still a deep sadness in her eyes.

Sitting up and placing some pillows behind her to support her back, she took the flowers and held them close to her nose so she could take in their scent. "I'll be okay. Thank you." She asked Faye to take the flowers and to put them in a vase with water so they would stay pretty and waited for her daughter to do as she was asked before saying, "I must be the worst mother in the world."

"That's not true." Calintz reached over, took her hand in his, and gave it a soft squeeze. "You're a great mother, even to people who aren't your children."

"I treated you and Faye well, but not Zeke," she muttered, lowering her gaze. "I used to be so good to him. For the first two years of his life I gave him all of my love and affection to the point that everyone thought I was going to spoil him. I was so happy because he was like a gift from my mother with his red hair and green eyes, and for a while we were the happiest mother and son in the world. But my people disapproved of me because I had a child outside of wedlock, not to mention at such a young age. I could no longer go out into the square and happily converse with the people that used to compliment me on my looks and tell me that I would find myself a great man to marry. Though it's bad of me to say, Zeke was the root of all of my problems.

"In order to preserve my sanity, I chose to distance myself from the child. I stopped spending time with him, and after awhile I thought I could forget about him entirely. I developed an indifference to him, and then a bitter hatred. After all, he had caused the worst days of my life. He slowly started to despise me, and that made it easier to dislike him. I mean, how can you love a child who openly hates you? I thought my troubles would be over. My people started to sympathize with me, and not long after I was back to conversing with them again.

"Then the flood ended and I knew I had to get the Master Sword back from the old castle so no one could lay claim to it. I knew the only person who could do it was Zeke, and so I sent him away to get it, but the mother in me wouldn't let me send him alone, so I went to Terence and begged him to let me have his best student to send with him. After he was gone, I spent a lot of time thinking about him and came to the realization that he was such a good young man. I knew I could count on him to return home with the sword in hand. After I came to this conclusion, I started talking to the people who knew Zeke, and they told me how he was respectable, courageous, and even wise beyond his years, although that one I doubt because Zeke never had any words of wisdom for me.

"I told myself that when he got home that I would apologize for everything I had put him through and I would beg him for his forgiveness, but now…" She started to cry and she hugged her knees. "I never got a chance to say I'm sorry."

Calintz rubbed her back and tried to think of something that would comfort her. "I think that deep down Zeke knew that you loved him, and if he didn't he desired nothing more than your approval. He would have forgiven you without hesitation." This brought about the desired affect, for Zelda stopped crying after she voiced a hiccup and smiled at him.

"I used to imagine that he would beg you to take him as your apprentice to become a knight. He always admired you."

For some reason this filled Calintz with pride. "He did express an interest in my home village. He would have made an excellent pupil, and he would have made us both proud."

Zelda shook her head. "I'm already proud of him. In just a few weeks, he sustained a wound that would have killed an ordinary man, he found love, and he died defending that love. If that isn't respectable then I don't know what is." She became glum again and said, "I would have liked to see him married. When I heard that he found someone special in Maiya I thought that he would finally receive the love he always deserved."

Faye finally returned and jumped onto the bed, taking a seat next to her mom. "I'm back."

With a pained smile, Zelda embraced her child and said, "At least I still have you. But now that you're my only child you can't be married."

"Aw, why not?" Faye asked, sounding completely devastated.

"Because then I'd have to share you with some filthy boy," Zelda said, chuckling. Then she looked at Calintz and said, "Unless you marry Calintz. I think I would be okay with that."

"_EW_! That's _gross_. He's like…a hundred times older than me."

"I am not," Calintz said sternly, glaring at the little princess. "I'm only seventeen years older than you."

"You're _old_."

"I am not!"

Zelda laughed, but still held onto her daughter protectively. "Settle down children, it was just an idea. I thought that if you two got married then Calintz would really be part of the family." She pulled Calintz into her embrace and she hugged both him and Faye. "Thank you for the flowers, you two. Your mother appreciates it."

* * *

"So Zelda's back in the throne room?" Reeve asked, surveying the bar crowd to make sure they were behaving. After the previous night's action, he was not about to let another fight break out.

"Yes, she is," Terence said, nodding. "I went and saw her this afternoon and she seemed to be in a good mood, but I can tell she's still really shaken up over Zeke's misfortune. That wound is one that will never heal I'm afraid."

Calintz smirked and imagined what would happen when Zeke showed up alive and in good health. "Well, I can't wait for Zeke to rise from the dead. Zelda will be the happiest woman alive."

Fandarel gave the white haired knight a rough pat on the back and laughed. "That's the spirit. Now let's raise our mugs high and sing the Bar Ballad of the Crimson Tears!" Together they raised their drinks and wrapped their free arms around each other's shoulders, starting to sing a song of their own composition.

'_Oh, look at the knights of the Crimson Tears,_

_All of them merry and drinking beer._

_Don't you worry there's nothing to fear,_

'_cause the knights of the Crimson Tears are here._

'_When evil's a brewin' we raise our swords,_

_Running into battle we are noble lords._

_No enemy can stop us, we'll slice'em like gourds,_

_With a roar and a chop we kill'em in hordes._

'_My name is Terence I'm a gentle soul,_

_I don't want to hurt you, killing's not my goal._

_I'll beat you in the head with my wooden pole,_

_You'll be bruised and ashamed but entirely whole_

'_We are the knights of the Crimson Tears,_

_Faultless and perfect we hear no jeers._

_All the girls will love us 'cause we have no fears,_

_Together till the end, we're the Crimson Tears._

'_Reeve be my name and I'm smarter than I look,_

_I've got more charisma than a romance book._

_I'll catch you like a fish with a bait-less hook,_

_But I'll throw you back if you count on me to cook._

'_With our mugs held high we take a solemn vow,_

_Only to the queen will we ever bow._

_We'll drink to her health and declare our love for her now,_

_We'll protect you Queen Zelda, even from a cow!_

'_My name is Fandarel and I always fight fair,_

_You can play dirty and I don't even care._

_But if you so much as touch a single one of mine hair,_

_My mother'll kick your ass from here to over there._

'_We take up our swords and we raise them high,_

_To our enemies, beware, you're about to die._

_We'll stand in a line and look up to the sky,_

_After we throw you in a catapult and watch you fly._

'_My name is Calintz but to you it's sir,_

_I'm related to Azel, how do you like that cur?_

_I can swing my sword so fast it's a blur,_

_My glare is so cold even Din would say brrr._

'_We laugh and we stomp, we take a swig of ale,_

_Hard men we be, don't you dare think we're frail._

_If you insult us too much we just might set sail,_

_To leave you to your enemies and watch you fail._

'_We are the knights of the Crimson Tears,_

_Faultless and perfect we hear no jeers._

_All the girls will love us 'cause we have no fears,_

_TOGETHER 'TIL THE END, WE'RE THE CRIMSON TEARS!'_

The four men hit their mugs together and brought them to their mouths, draining them together and burping in unison. All of the people in the bar started to clap and cheer, praising the knights that they all respected so much. The four knights gave a low bow and roared with laughter, declining requests for a repeat of their song.

"It's too bad Grogh, Midori, Brudegan, Roland, Link and Zelda aren't here," Reeve said as he filled his mug again. "Then we could have sang the whole thing."

Terence laughed. "Oh yes, Midori and Zelda had the best introductions."

"I'm just glad that Calintz is old enough to drink with us now," Fandarel grinned. "Now he can really carry on Link's legacy."

"Link never drank, did he?" Calintz asked, confused. He could remember Link telling him on several occasions that he was opposed to drinking, and he could not recall ever seeing Link with a mug filled with alcohol.

The other three knights leaned in close and Fandarel said, "That's exactly the point. Now that you can drink, you can take Link's place. We would always drag him to the bar, but none of us could get him to take even a sip of drink. He was hardly any fun sober, but on the rare occasion that he would become intoxicated…well, that was part of what made the bar ballad so great."

*

"See yah later, Calintz." Terence and Fandarel were both supporting Reeve who had consumed more than his fair share of alcohol.

Calintz laughed as Reeve started to sing a song by the Indigo-go's in an off key tenor. The three older knights all roomed together in a house they had built close to the training grounds, but Calintz, preferring solitude, had chosen to build a small home for himself just far enough away to be free of the sounds of society. Knowing that using Farore's Wind while under the affects of alcohol was a death wish, he was forced to walk all the way up to his home.

"Care for a walking companion?" Enigma walked out of the shadows and fell in step with the knight. "I heard that you were the one who told Zelda of her son's fate. Would you mind telling me then why I saw Zeke, Kenji, and a young girl traveling towards New Castle Town?"

Calintz scratched his head and looked around to see if there was anyone close by that would over hear the conversation. "Zeke's not really dead. He ordered me to tell Zelda that."

"And why would he do that? Did he just want to put his mother through unendurable pain?"

"No, he thought that it would be easier to move around if people thought he was dead. He plans on delving into long forgotten stories to unravel a dark mystery that has presented itself to him on a couple occasions." Looking over at the cloaked man, he asked, "How goes freeing Maiya?"

"It's already done," Enigma responded, readjusting his hood so it hung over his face more. "She's staying in Ondine with Noèlle. Right now, Sherri of the Seeking Eye is disguised as Maiya and is currently trying to discover what the man's plan is, so we can't let Maiya roam around otherwise the man may become suspicious."

"Still no word on who he is?"

"He's always wearing a mask and we're sure that he's using a false voice just in case."

Calintz was dismayed by this, but there was little that could be done. "Tell the Seeking Eye that they are to monitor the man's actions, but if their spy is found then they are to pull out immediately. After you're done with that…go alert Link to this problem and ask him to aid us in any way he sees fit."

This caused the cloaked man to trip on his own feet as he quickly turned to look at Calintz. Jumping back to his feet, he ignored the questioning stare the knight gave him and asked if that was a wise decision. "Link has been gone for ten years. What makes you think he'll even want to help?"

"I don't know, but I think it's time that he returned to the surface. Just make sure he avoids New Castle Town, or Zelda might throw a fit. After all, she sent him away and didn't sound like she ever wanted him to come back." He tried to think of what else could be done, and then he returned his gaze to Enigma. "Go to Zeke and ask him if he'll share his plan of action with you. I want to make sure he's not doing anything foolish."

"As you wish, Calintz." Enigma burst into a flurry of leaves and was gone.

With a sigh, Calintz said, "May luck and fortune pursue you."


	22. Chapter 22: Discovering the Truths

Chapter 22: Discovering The Truths

Enigma and Calintz took their positions in the tower facing west and relieved the current watch for the time being. It was crucial that the watchtower was empty of unfriendly eyes for the prince's plan to succeed. When Enigma had found Zeke, he was let in on a plan to break into the Archives and had accepted an offer for help. Enigma agreed to stay in the tower to keep anyone else from arriving while the first part of the plan was still in progress so Calintz could lend his aid to Zeke and the others more directly by helping them over the city barrier.

It would be a difficult process. Calintz wanted to make sure that there would be no evidence that the city had ever been breached, and he especially did not want to leave a way in for anyone else who might have come later seeking to enter the city with dangerous motives. They had considered Farore's Wind, but until Calintz made a return trip to his hometown he would not be able to learn the subtlest form of the sacred technique. Instead, they would go about it in a different way.

"Are you sure this will work?" Sakura asked as she stared up at the wall. The wall was a good fifteen feet high. It was built that way to keep people out and, if their enemies had ways of scaling walls, slow down anyone who would dare try going over it. From the girl's low viewpoint, the city wall was of monstrous proportions. "What if Sir Calintz is not over there and he does not catch me?"

Zeke smirked, but it was hidden from view by his hood. "Well, in that case you'll go splat."

"What?"

Kenji threw an amused look at the prince and chuckled. "Or she could always hope that she grows wings again and floats to the ground."

Sakura flinched as the two young men standing on both sides of her took her arms and started laughing. "Wait, I've changed my mind. I don't want to do it." Continuing to plead, it was almost impossible for her to hold back a scream of terror when she was launched over the wall.

Leaning towards Zeke, Kenji asked, "Did she just use contractions?"

"She must have been really scared if she shortened her sentences," Zeke responded softly. "Maybe one of us should have gone first to assure her it was safe?" When a voice boomed inside of his head, Zeke involuntarily caught his breath and he became rigid.

_DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT TO ME AGAIN! _Sakura screamed inside of Zeke's head, sending a bloody image of what she would do to him if he ever did something awful to her again. _You be sure to tell Kenji that I will kill him as well if he even thinks about throwing me again._

"Sakura's not too happy right now." Stepping forward, he pressed his ear to the wall and listened as hard as he could. Reverberating in the wall were sharp crack like noises that the prince thought might be Morse code. "I think Calintz is trying to tell us something."

The noises stopped. As Zeke was bringing his head away from the wall, the stone block he was leaning against shot out of the wall and smacked him in the head. _And that is what you get._

"Both of you," Calintz said from the other side of the wall. "Use the stones I'm about to push out to climb up the wall. Be quick about it." As he finished speaking, more stones were pushed out by a few inches all the way up the wall.

"Brains before stupidity," Kenji said as he started to climb up the wall as quickly as he could.

Zeke rose to his feet, mumbling under his breath. Repositioning his sword, he placed a hand on one of the stones and started to climb. Using the power he had gained in the previous weeks, he reached the top faster than he thought he would and dropped to the other side of the wall. "That's a neat trick, Calintz."

The knight said nothing as he climbed over the wall and repositioned the stones in the wall so it appeared that nothing had ever been amiss. When he jumped back over the wall using a gust of wind, he gave Zeke a long and hateful look. "What do you have to say for yourself?" he asked, his fists clenched and his eyes narrowed.

"Excuse me?" Zeke's answer was unwelcome, and before he could do anything about it Calintz struck him with the back of his hand. Holding his face, he held back his anger and asked, "What was that for?"

"That was nothing compared to what I want to do to you," Calintz hissed, rubbing his knuckles to ease the pain. "What you did to your mother was unforgivable. How you can live with yourself is beyond me, but I'm appalled that you would dare show your face around here after what you've done." Before Zeke could inquire what exactly his actions had brought about, Calintz started walking down the street at a brisk pace. "You're on your own from here on out. If you need assistance, just say 'Darkness, come unto me' and Enigma will come to your aid."

Zeke and the other two stared after the knight until he disappeared in the shadows. When he was out of sight for a good amount of time they all started walking again. "You'll have to excuse him," said Enigma as he appeared from out of an alleyway and fell into step with Zeke. "Calintz was the harbinger of the most awful news in quite some time. Being close to your mother was probably the worst thing for him. After all, she considers him family."

"What exactly happened when he went through with my orders?" Zeke asked, pulling his hood down. "I thought she would be happy to be rid of me. Everyone knows that I brought about the worst years of her life. However," he reached into his cloak and pulled out the pictographs Orca had given him. "Explain these."

Enigma took the pictographs and lit a flame on the tip of his finger so he could see them better. "Ah yes, the forbidden pictures. Before I explain anything, please tell me where you got these."

"Orca gave them to me saying Roland wished for me to see them."

"Of course. Roland would have been the only one who could get to these," Enigma mused. "I must tell you, young prince, that the way you have been treated by your mother did not start when you were first born. In point of fact, she didn't start any of that until shortly before you turned three. I don't know all the details. Your mother kept you well protected for your first few years, and forbade anyone to approach you without her permission, but you were her most precious acquaintance. If you wish to hear a firsthand account, might I suggest searching out Sir Link? He knows more than I. Last I heard he was traveling this way from somewhere deep in the forest. When you're done here, you should head his way."

Kenji tugged on Zeke's sleeve and cleared his throat to get his attention. "Forgive me for interrupting, but we must make it to the Archives before sun up. If you would follow me, I know a shortcut that will get us there faster than following the main road."

Both Zeke and Enigma agreed and they all started running down back alleys that Zeke did not know even existed. With their black cloaks swirling out behind them, they quickly made it through the west sector of the city and to the central square where the Archives were.

"The Archives will be locked at this time of night, but if we can get into the courtyard we'll be able to get in through a door in the alleyway," Kenji said, slipping passed a pillar and stopping at a locked gate. "Anyone know how to pick a lock?"

"Why can't we just climb over the wall?" Zeke asked, looking out at the square to make sure no one had followed them. This night was starting to get stressful for him.

Kenji grunted. "We could, but we'd be seen by Master Virgil. That old man keeps an eye on everything from his window. He'd see us for sure." Leaning against the wall, he sighed and said, "If we climb over he'll go crazy with this bell he has in his room and that will wake up the entire city in mere seconds."

"What are our other options?" Enigma asked, crossing his arms.

Kenji eyed the cloaked man apathetically and shrugged. "We could try to pick one of the locks. This one would be too much trouble and the doors that go directly into the Archives are locked from the inside with no key hole in front, but there's a back entrance to the courtyard that has an older lock on it that should be pretty easy to pick if you know how."

They all agreed on this course of action and quickly moved around the wall of the archive courtyard. As they were sneaking, Sakura asked Zeke how big the castle was with her mind. The central square was the closest public area to the castle, and from where the Archives stood the castle towered high above the square with impressive might.

_It's not as big as it appears_, Zeke told her, taking her hand and pulling her behind him when he noticed that she had stopped to stare at the castle. _Not as big as the old one. That place was monstrous._

Upon approaching the back gate, they all froze at the sight of someone else trying to pick the lock. Out of loyalty for his former craft hall, Kenji dropped his hood to reveal his identity and drew one of his blades. "Halt," he said as strongly as he could, knowing that many people underestimated his strength and abilities due to his lean figure. "State your name and your business."

The man whirled around to face the group, his hand clutching his heart. "Kenji? When did you get back?" The Master Harper then grew irritated and placed his hands on his hips. "I told you to report directly to me when you got back, and now with the circumstances as they are you should have obeyed that order with more tenacity than ever."

"Master Harper Petiron?" Kenji asked, lowering his blade and gawking at the old man. "What are you doing trying to break into the Archives?"

The two Harpers stared at each other for a long moment, finding themselves at a stalemate. While Petiron could have Kenji removed from his position for disobeying orders, he could also lose his rank of Master Harper if the journeyman went to a knight with information regarding his most recent nocturnal escapade.

Finally, after Zeke saw Kenji sheath his sword, Petiron said, "Come with me and I'll explain everything to you." With agility that defied his age, the Master Harper quickly walked past them and towards his own hall. After making sure he knew who was walking next to him, he said, "I am almost finished with the elegy you asked me to write, Enigma. It's a rather haunting tune that I think you will approve of."

Enigma's hood turned towards Petiron and his chilling chuckle resonated from inside the darkness that concealed his face. "Nothing could be more haunting than the Elegy of Ondine."

*

"So, first of all, who are the other hoods?" Petiron asked after they were all comfortably seated in his living room. When neither of the two mystery people revealed who they were, he said, "Since you are in my home, it is only common courtesy that you, at the very least, give an explanation to me. I could very easily just ask Kenji for your identities seeing that I am his superior and he would have no choice but to reveal your faces to me."

Zeke turned to Sakura and nodded. "Master Harper, I must ask that you keep your tongue tightly leashed or I'll be forced to do something to keep you from talking," he said as he dropped his hood. Petiron's reaction was as he predicted. The man gaped at him and pointed, then stuttered as he was trying to voice his confusion. "Yes, I am supposed to be dead. As a Harper, you should be able to respect a cunning plan of action such as mine."

Walking to a desk, Petiron swiped a parchment off of it and held it out at Zeke angrily. "And what am I to do with this?" On the parchment was a rough draft of a ballad that was paying respects to the "deceased" prince. "Shortly after your mother returned to the throne room she asked me to compose the most magnificent ballad I'd ever written in honor of you. I don't like wasting my work."

"Then don't." Zeke took the parchment and read through it, smirking when a blood stained tunic and a broken sword came up. "I take it you saw the false evidence?"

The Master Harper's eye twitched and he plucked the parchment out of the prince's hands. "I needed to in order to accurately describe what might have killed you seeing that no one knew exactly how it happened. With Kenji taking his time on returning I had to put something there until he could give me his first hand account." Placing the ballad back on his desk, his face reflected much confusion. "If you're not really dead, then where did all that blood come from? An animal?"

Standing next to the fire so it would better light his body, Zeke lifted his tunic to reveal the scar on his belly. "The blood was mine. I got in a heated argument with a woman and she ran me through with a sword. If you examined the tunic closely you could see where it was cut and ripped by hand."

With an amused grin, Petiron shook his head and turned his attention to the still hooded Sakura. "If I'm not mistaken then, you must be Maiya. I must say, whatever the argument was, I don't think the prince quite deserved to have a sword put in him."

"Actually, that's not Maiya," Kenji murmured, reaching over and pulling the hood down. "Maiya was kidnapped by Raikkus when he escaped. This is Sakura, a forest fairy who was granted a human body by a great fairy named Kendra. She's wise beyond her appearance, but she's still a little naïve."

Petiron dropped into an old, but comfortable looking chair and held his head in his hands. "Fairies, dead princes, a nobleman becoming a madman, this is all too much for someone as old as I to handle." He listened intently to Zeke as he recounted his journey to the old castle, and then the events on the night Maiya was kidnapped. "I see. So you thought that by faking your death that you would be granted an exceptional amount of versatility to move around without people standing in your way. Very wise, and at the same time very foolish. While you have undoubtedly accomplished your goal considering you managed to get into the city unnoticed, you caused your mother a great deal of pain with your lie and I don't think she'll be quite the same until you reveal yourself to her."

There was no way around it. After Calintz struck him and with a subtle, but strong, verbal lashing from the Master Harper, Zeke was positive that guilt would not be an easy enemy to escape. "Regardless of what my actions wrought, I must think strategically and this was the best course of action for me to take," Zeke said in an attempt to assuage his bitter feelings towards himself.

The man nodded, lacing his fingers together and resting his chin on them. "I see you have inherited your mother's tongue," he commented. "I suppose it's my turn to explain what I was doing at the Archives at such a late hour." He waited with hope that someone would tell him it was unnecessary for him to say, but the four people in his home were all staring at him expectantly. "I'd like to call it an old man trying to preserve his youth, but I guess the only explanation is that I was pursuing my personal interests."

"Why can't you do that in the day time like everyone else?" Kenji asked.

"Because mine are a bit embarrassing." He laughed when two of the visible faces took on uncomfortable expressions. "It's nothing horrible, I assure you. My personal interests lie in our countries mythology." Reaching under his chair, Petiron took a polished box and set it in his lap. "Mind if I smoke?" When no one objected, he opened the box and took out a long stemmed pipe that he filled with a pinch of tobacco. Enigma flicked his fingers and sent a spark across the room to land in the pipe. "Ah, thank you my furtive friend."

"Hyrule's mythology?" Zeke asked, exchanging a look with Kenji. "Would you by any chance know anything about Sri Tessla and the fourth force?"

After taking a prolonged draw from his pipe, Petiron blew the smoke out his nose and made an intrigued noise in his throat. "If it were not for your tone I would think you just read my mind." He blew more smoke out in a steady stream from his mouth, chuckling when Enigma manipulated the smoke to take on the shape of a bunny with wings. "The legend of Sri Tessla and the crystal force is the very one I've studied for most of my years."

"What can you tell us about it?" Zeke asked with such enthusiasm that Sakura flinched.

The old Harper cocked an eyebrow and softly bit down on the stem of his pipe. "Enigma, go to my room and pull up the floor board closest to the window. There should be a small box with the Triforce upon its lid," he paused as Enigma left the room and his footsteps could be heard climbing the stairs. "You said that Raikkus took Maiya, is that right?"

Kenji nodded and leaned back in his chair. "Sakura said that he was dark skinned with hair the color of blood. Prince Zeke's description was of a tall man with good muscle build. The only person I can think of that fits both is Raikkus."

"Such a troublesome revelation," Petiron mumbled. "I've seen Raikkus going to and from the castle quite frequently as of late. Many of the other masters have been curious as to why." Enigma returned shortly after leaving and handed Petiron an old looking box that had been polished to a reflective state. "When I was a young man, I was not a child of music, rather I was the son of a seafaring man. Before I had an accident that ended my days as a sailor, I was quite obsessed with treasure, and not the philosophical kind either."

He passed the box to Zeke and told him to open it. "One afternoon, while I was out in my boat with two friends, a storm hit us unexpectedly and caught us in a bad position. Before we could do anything to prevent it, the mass of our ship snapped like a twig and we lost our emergency raft. After the rain and waves eased, we were stranded out at sea with no hope of ever returning home. With this in mind, we decided that the best thing for us to do was to focus our efforts on pursuing our interests. On that day I came to realize that I wanted to be a treasure hunter, and in a desperate attempt to find something worthwhile I threw my fishing line out into the sea and begged the Goddesses to give me something. Unfortunately my fishing line was only so long, and I came up with nothing. By sheer luck, we came across a fishing boat and we offered our services to them in exchange of a safe return to our homes. When we returned home, I immediately went to the Archives to search for any information on hidden relics that I could discover, and I came across the most well kept secret in Hyrule's history."

Zeke looked inside the box and frowned. There was only a piece of broken crystal and a torn bit of parchment. "I hope you're not referring to this junk."

"Junk?" Petiron scoffed, snatching the box back. "This is far from junk, my dear boy." Holding the crystal fragment with his thumb and forefinger, and motioned for Enigma to come closer and said, "Help me shine some light on these youthful minds here, my friend."

Enigma, curious as to what was going to happen, clapped his hands together and kept them pressed against each other for a little while before bringing his hands away to reveal a shining ball of light. Tossing the ball to the Harper, he stepped back and waited for something to happen.

Petiron took the ball of light with his other hand and held it up behind the crystal. When the light shone through the crystal, a beam of incredibly white light focused on the wall behind Zeke and Sakura. "Now, if this were just an ordinary piece of crystal the light would be multicolored like a rainbow, but the light coming from this is pure and without blemish. The reason for this is due to this being a fragment of the crystal force."

"The crystal force?" Zeke, Kenji, and Sakura all said in unison, leaning forward to look at the crystal with newfound interest.

"Aye, the crystal force," Petiron said with a nod. "Made from the purest crystal, and shaped so that it will fit in the center of the Triforce, which is symbolic in its own way."

Zeke took the piece again and examined it more closely. "You must tell me everything you know about this."

The Harper, unfortunately, knew very little. "I'm sorry, prince, but I have nothing to tell you that you haven't already heard. Information on the crystal force is jealously guarded and nearly impossible to come across. I've been scouring the Archives since I became Master Harper, yet I've found very few tomes in the confines of that hall that even hint at the existence of it."

"Perhaps you're going about this all wrong, Zeke," Enigma said, gingerly taking the crystal from him for his own examination. "Instead of looking for literature on it, why don't you try seeking help from someone who might have been around when it was created?"

"But there's no one in Hyrule that has survived that long," Zeke mumbled, giving the cloaked man a scrutinizing gaze. "This all happened during the creation of Hyrule. Unless Din or one of the other Goddesses wants to come here from the Sacred Realm to tell us everything we want to know, there's no one else we can ask."

Petiron cleared his throat to get everyone's attention again, and he indicated the piece of parchment that was in the box. "I found this parchment when I was out on an adventure searching for the other shards. It is an incomplete script, but what it does say is quite enlightening. "…prevent darkness from…the light was bent to create…pure crystal broken into seven pieces…Ondine…" and the rest is gone, but what's important is that it mentions Ondine. I'd wager that deep in the city of Ondine there is another fragment begging to be found."

*

"How do we get to Ondine?" Zeke asked Enigma, stepping into the cold night air. "Isn't there something you have to do?"

Enigma shook his hood and crossed his arms. "Not anymore. All you have to do is find the gate and you can walk right on through. My advice to you is that you find Sir Link because he'll be able to guide you there." Looking up at the castle, he sighed and placed a hand on Zeke's shoulder. "And if you'll accept one more word of advice, I would suggest being honest with your mother before you leave." When Zeke started to object, he said, "At the very least leave something for her to find that would hint that you are alive. You have no idea how much pain she's in right now because of your lie. Just give her some hope that you'll return to her someday."

Zeke felt a surge of guilt run through his veins, but one thing still bothered him. "What exactly happened when Calintz told her?"

"Tell Sakura and Kenji that you will be a little while longer returning to your campsite and I'll take you to the throne room."

Confused, Zeke did as he was told and approached Kenji and Sakura. "There's something I've got to do before we leave. I'll catch up to you guys later."

"But Kenji is already planning on going to his fiancé," Sakura moaned. "What am I going to do? I do not have anything that needs doing here, so I cannot say that I have a place to go to."

At that moment, Calintz appeared in a burst of leaves right behind Sakura. "I'll take her to your campsite. Just do whatever it is that you've got to do, Zeke." The knight had a hopeful look on his face as if he expected Zeke to reveal himself to his mother. Taking Sakura's hand, they both disappeared in another burst of leaves.

"Sakura's right," Kenji said, looking towards the Harper Hall dormitories happily. "There's a girl in one of those rooms that's waiting for me to return, and I have to tell her that I'm going to be a little while longer. If she loves me, she'll be understanding." Giving Zeke a pat on the back, he jogged over to the dormitories and disappeared through a door.

"Well Zeke? Are you ready?" Enigma asked.

"I guess."

Taking a hold of Zeke's tunic, Enigma waited for a few seconds before a subtle wind enveloped them and the next thing the prince knew he was standing in the deserted throne room. Striding forward, the cloaked man turned his attention on the cracked stained glass above the throne. "When Calintz told your mother that you had been killed, she told the guards to leave so she could talk to with Calintz in private. As soon as the doors closed, she screamed with such force that it cracked the glass up there. I was lounging in the rafters when it happened and I have to say that it was the most horrible sound I've ever heard. If Faye had been included in the obituary, I have no doubt that the glass would have shattered."

Zeke stared up at the high window mournfully. Ever since he was a child he would hear rumors of people who could break glass with nothing but their voices, but he had never believed it was possible since no one had ever done it in front of him. "She really did that?" When Enigma nodded, Zeke finally realized the full scope of his mother's pain. Reaching into his tunic, he retrieved the pictographs he had been given and stared down at the one he favored the most. Standing in the place where his mother's love had shown through with such force that it ruined an intricate work of art and looking down at a pictograph of his mother staring down at him with pure adoration was almost too much for him to handle.

"Zeke, are you okay?" Enigma asked as he was looking behind the throne curiously. He started fiddling with something and then, to Zeke's horror, took a piece off of the back of the throne. "Here we are."

"What in the world are you doing?" Zeke nearly screamed, dashing forward to stop the man from damaging the high backed chair any further. "This isn't something you should be tampering with."

Enigma's hood turned towards Zeke, but quickly returned to where it had been looking. "I'm not tampering with anything. This chair was made like this. Take a look, I'm sure you'll want to see what this secret compartment holds."

Despite his discomfort of possibly damaging an important artifact, he walked behind the throne and peered into a hollow that was underneath the chair. Inside were more pictographs, all of them similar to the ones he had in his possession, along with a small, colorful blanket that looked oddly familiar to him. "What is all of this?"

"Stuff," Enigma said simply. "Every mother has things that they hold onto when their children get older. Most women prefer to hold onto their children's favorite toy or stuffed animal, but your mother cherished these pictographs and that blanket more than anything else. The pictographs because they remind her of how much fun you two had together when you were first born, and the blanket because you carried that thing around with you everywhere. She made it for you while she was pregnant, and was completely elated when she discovered how much you loved it."

Feeling that it would be invasive to remove any of the items from the throne's compartment, Zeke just sat and stared at the mess of pictures and the blanket. "Why does she have these?"

"I have no idea, but my guess is that she's been feeling sentimental lately." Pointing at the ceiling rafters, Enigma said, "From my perch up there I've spotted her viewing the pictographs a lot in the passed week. Today she told the guards to leave her just so she could curl up on the throne and hold your blanket. And do you know what I heard? She prayed to the Goddesses in hopes that they would tell your spirit that she was sorry for everything."

"Why were you up in the rafters?"

"Because it's a good place to get information. How else do you think I stay so well informed? It's this thing called eavesdropping."

Rising to his feet, he motioned for Enigma to fix the chair and stepped away from the throne. "I've got an idea if you're willing to help."

*

Sneaking into his own home was not an unfamiliar task for Zeke, for he had done his fair share of midnight excursions in the past. However, doing it discreetly was completely new. At this time of night, he was positive that everyone was home, which could complicate things if anyone decided they needed something from their personal kitchen. Lucky for him he knew that Faye was a heavy sleeper and that Roland always slept in a room near the terrace so he could sneak out and go fishing in the morning without anyone knowing. The only person he really had to worry about was his mother who had been a light sleeper for as long as he could remember. On several of his late night adventures he would come home to find his mother waiting for him, having been awakened by the sound of their door opening and closing when he would leave.

On the other hand, he had been informed by Enigma that his mother was more depressed than he had ever seen her before, which was a good sign that she was indulging in large amounts of cake. Zeke knew very well that her comfort food was cake with frightening amounts of frosting on it, and it made Zeke wonder how she stayed so lean for someone who had a sweet tooth as bad as she did. One good side to this habit was that by gorging on her comfort food, his mother would sleep heavier than usual, and he really hoped that this was an occasion where she had been doing just that.

Waiting in the doorway, Zeke listened hard for any sounds. Faye was snoring, but otherwise the home was completely silent. Lowering his hood just in case anyone saw him, he quietly rushed to his bedroom and opened the door. To his surprise, someone had cleaned his room in his absence, and felt a wave of displeasure run through him. _First things first_, he thought, pulling out his belt knife. Double-checking that he was alone, he carved a message into his door before returning to his business. With his room clean he would have trouble finding what he was looking for, but luckily his room had seen use since it had been cleaned. A few of his possessions were misplaced, telling him that the items had been held at some point by a distraught woman mourning the death of her son.

Reaching to the top of a shelf, he took down an old stuffed animal that he had had since he was a toddler. It was a funny looking bear that was as tall as he was when he first got it, and he could remember having contests with it to see who was taller for a few months afterwards. He had dressed it in one of his tunics from when he was little and had put his prince's circlet on its brow for safekeeping since he rarely wore it. This was the possession he needed. Moving to his desk, he opened a bottle of ink and took a pen from out of a drawer so he could jot something down on the pictograph he liked so much, making sure he wrote in the empty space in a corner.

Carefully closing his door behind him as he left his room, he crept down a hall and stopped at his mother's door. Pressing his ear to the smooth wood, he could hear his mother mumbling incoherently, a habit she had when she would sleep heavily. Slowly, he opened the door, grateful that the hinges were well oiled to prevent squeaking. As he peered into the room, he held his breath and waited. Zelda was still muttering, but with the door open Zeke could clearly hear that she was having a nightmare. This presented a problem. If she woke up from that nightmare she would most surely discover him, so he had to act quickly.

Striding over to her desk, he placed his stuffed bear in a sitting position and put the pictograph in its lap. Out of habit, he looked the bear in the eye and softly said, "Make sure mom gets this pictograph, okay Kisuke?" After making sure his friend would stay sitting up, he turned his attention to his mom.

Carefully, he sat down on the bed and took one of her hands in both of his. "Mom, I hope that someday you'll be able to forgive me for what I've done. When I'm done looking for answers, I will come home and I promise I will try to be a better son." He kissed her on the cheek and stood up, noticing that she was no longer mumbling.

Now for his escape. Walking over to the single window that overlooked the city, he opened the shutters and stepped onto the ledge, feeling like a bird as he crouched. _I hope Enigma's ready_.

There was a gasp behind him, and he felt his heart sink. Zelda had awakened from her nightmare, but had not yet realized that there was someone else in her room. Turning quickly to see if she had noticed him, Zeke accidentally fell out of the window, but not before making eye contact with the woman sitting in the bed. Weightlessness enveloped him, but then he heard Enigma falling behind him and he knew that he would be safe. As the wind rushed around his body, he could just barely see his mother stick her head out of her window and look down at him.

"Zeke?" he heard her say, but then he was standing on firm ground, facing Sakura and Calintz. He shuddered as the weight of his body returned in the blink of an eye.

"What took you so long?" Sakura asked, looking up at him. In her hands was a long stick with a sausage link speared on the end of it that she was roasting over the fire. Despite the serious situation he had just come from, Zeke could not help but feel amused at the sight.

"I had a little trouble finding something because someone cleaned my room," Zeke said, taking a seat next to the fire to warm his body after falling out of a window and feeling the chill of the wind. "Luckily no one messed with anything on my shelf."

"I know all of that already. I want to know why you hesitated to jump out the window," she said, rotating her sausage.

After a questioning glance from Zeke, Calintz said, "Sakura took a look inside your head to see what you were doing." The knight had quite a different attitude towards Zeke now, although he still appeared troubled about something. "What you did was the right thing, and when your mother comes running up to me saying that she saw you I'm going to tell her that Hyrule is full of mysteries and that she's not crazy like a lot of people are going to think she is."

"Your mother is going to be very confused," Enigma said, seating himself next to Sakura and grabbing another stick. "However, Calintz and I will make sure that she stays hopeful. As long as she holds onto the slightest hope that you live, she will survive long enough to see you again." Stabbing a sausage with his stick, he started to roast it like Sakura. "If I were you, I would start thinking of how I'm going to present myself to her."

"There's no time for that," Zeke said, wondering where the sausages had come from. "First we have to go to Ondine where we'll hopefully find another shard of the crystal force, and from there, who knows where fate will take us. I don't see me returning home for a very long time."

"She likes flowers," Calintz mentioned, saying that she had really liked the ones he and Faye had given her. "Red rose, just remember that."

"And she's a big fan of those sweets that old Margo makes," Enigma said, poking his sausage to see if it was done cooking.

"And she really likes shiny objects," Sakura put in.

"She does?" Enigma asked, turning his hood to face the girl. Calintz, too, gave Sakura a curious stare.

Unnerved by the attention she was being given, Sakura said, "What girl does not like shiny stuff? Diamonds, rubies, they are all fascinating. At least I think so." Feeling small under everyone's gaze, she turned her attention to her cooking sausage and ignored everyone else.

"She's got a point," Calintz said, scratching his chin. "Girls really do like jewelry."

Zeke rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "I get it. When I return I'll give my mom a field full of red roses that have Margo's sweets inside their petals. Oh, and did I mention that the petals are going to be made out of rubies?"

"Now you're talking," Enigma said with a laugh. "But seriously, you owe your mom something more than an apology for being a lying and hurtful son."

"Who do you think you are? My father?"

"No. If I was your father I'd beat you until you were the most obedient child there was."

Sakura looked towards the castle and grunted angrily. "What is taking Kenji so long?"

Calintz and Enigma shared a look of amusement and Zeke said, "He's probably convincing his fiancé to let him come along with us," he said with a wink.

"Oh! Touch telepathy!" she exclaimed, earning questioning looks from Enigma and Calintz and laughter from Zeke. When they asked her what she was talking about, she shrugged and said, "You would have had to be there."


	23. Chapter 23: An Old Friend

Chapter 23: An Old Friend

Sakura nibbled on a chunk of bread as she watched Zeke and Kenji spar. Kenji had asked Zeke to help him since he was a mere shadow of his former self, which the fairy girl found frightening seeing that he was still quite skilled. It was either he was too modest, or Zeke was just unaccustomed to fighting an opponent who dual wielded weapons, but Sakura thought it was more likely the latter. The Harper's form was incredibly stiff and too hesitant for him to still retain much of a blade master's skill.

However, Kenji was at a disadvantage. Because the Master Sword would burn Zeke's hand every time he touched it, he was forced to borrow one of Kenji's blades for their spar. The sword was a bit long for the prince, but because he was used to fighting in a free spirited way he had a better advantage than Kenji who had been taught a proper discipline.

As they stood facing each other, waiting for Sakura to give them the signal to start, they were silently surveying their environment to find anything they could use to help gain an edge in the upcoming grapple. Zeke could see plenty of stepping places that he could use to quickly move around the Harper, seeing that agility was the only thing he could use to overwhelm Kenji.

Stifling a yawn with her chunk of bread, Sakura raised her hand to tell them she was about to begin their duel. After giving both of them a quick, but obviously bored gaze, she dropped her hand saying, "Start."

Knowing that if he let Kenji make the first move he would be forced into submission by the Harper's technical prowess, Zeke shot to the side and kicked off of a tree. Going airborne, he ignored the risk that he was leaving himself wide open and brought his sword down to strike Kenji on top of the head. In order to block the assault, Zeke knew Kenji would have to use both of his hands since one hand was not strong enough to hold back the force of Zeke's weight and momentum.

Falling into the maneuver, Kenji gripped his sword with both hands and held his sword up so that Zeke's sword would fall to the side and hopefully leave an opening for him to exploit.

The harsh sound of steel sliding on steel caused both of them to cringe, but neither fell victim to the high-pitched whine. With his sword deflected, Zeke landed on his feet but immediately jumped up into Kenji, knocking him off balance with his shoulder. Slashing upwards he broke through the quick guard and, turning his sword slightly, gave Kenji a gentle tap on the forehead with the flat of his blade.

Kenji hit the ground with a dull thud and dropped his blade upon impact. Sitting up, he looked up at Zeke and sighed. "Looks like I'm going to need some more work."

Zeke helped the Harper to his feet and brushed some dirt off his back. "Don't worry," he said as he handed Kenji his sword. "I only just started using a sword a month ago and, though I don't mean to sound immodest, I'm pretty good. If you keep sparring with me you'll be back to your former abilities in no time."

"The winner is Zeke," Sakura said as she turned to look through their food sack. "Why does the food keep disappearing?"

Taking the sack away from her, Zeke said, "Because you keep eating it. I can't believe how much you eat, fatty."

The girl started to pout and looked at the sack with longing. "I cannot help it," she mumbled. "I am hungry. Ever since I became human I have been starving all the time. It is not my fault."

"Well then let's go back to Kendra and ask her to change you back," Zeke said with a wicked grin. "You were much easier to take care of when you were a fairy. It would be doing all of us a big favor to have you changed back."

Sakura gasped and stood up. "How can you say that? I am not that much of a nuisance." Taking a hold of the back of Zeke's tunic, she continued to plead with him, following him when he would go to the horses or somewhere else. "Please, I will try not to eat so much, just please promise you will not have me changed back."

Climbing onto his horse, he took a hold of Sakura's wrist and pulled her up so she could take her spot behind him. "Just quit eating so much or you'll get fat," he said, rolling his eyes. "Gah, you're such a pest." Zeke waited for Kenji to mount his horse before setting off again. "Do you know where we're going, Kenji?"

Peering down at their map, Kenji shrugged and scratched his head. "Not a clue. Enigma said to look for Sir Link and apparently the esteemed knight is heading towards us, but if he's traveling through the forest then we could pass by him without even knowing it." Shaking his head, he sighed and said, "Ondine is nearly impossible to find if you don't know where you're going. If we can't find him then we might as well give up because we'll never find it on our own."

"Hey Zeke."

"Hey Sakura."

"Why is Sir Link so famous?" she asked.

Zeke took a moment to think about it before answering. There were a great many things that the man had accomplished over the course of a few years that had escalated his reputation to one of incredible respectfulness and every single one of them gave credit to his name. "Sir Link is famous because he was a farm boy who took up the sword to protect people from an impending darkness. He single handedly defeated countless enemies and even cleansed a corrupted soul. After all that he changed the way people thought of knights by assembling the Crimson Tears and bringing honor back to the order. With his knights, he defended our homes from Gill and the country of Ardor who had finally found the courage to attack us. Sir Link was a beacon of light in a time of great darkness."

"Okay, I have another question," she said, reaching down and slipping off one of her sandals. "What are these?"

"Those would be your toes," Zeke answered as the girl lifted her foot and pointed at the appendages at the ends of her feet. "They help you with your balance." A thought occurred to him so he asked, "Didn't you have toes when you were a fairy?"

"Well, yeah, but I never paid them any attention." She wiggled her toes and put her sandal back on. "They look like short and stubby foot fingers."

And so the day went with Sakura asking questions about everything that popped into her head, and the amount of questions was no small number. Inquisitions about anything seemed to flow from her mouth like a waterfall after ice from winter melts, and Zeke and Kenji were far from prepared to answer all of the questions.

"Sakura, why do you have so many questions?" Zeke asked after a series of questions regarding creatures that were considered evil had been answered. "I thought fairies were supposed to be born with incredible knowledge of the world."

"Yes and no," she said with a shrug. "I know about stuff, but when it comes to the complexities of government, emotions, and other such things I am quite clueless. If you were to run into an Armos Knight, I would be able to tell you that it is a creature made entirely of stone except for a gem over it's heart where the magic that keeps it alive is stored and that by damaging the jewel you would kill the Armos, but if you asked me to tell you how it came to be or the history on it then I would be unable to help you."

Kenji looked up from a piece of parchment and said, "So in other words, you know trivia about creatures, but you are unable to assess their motives, feelings, or what makes them what they are."

"That is correct."

"Seems pretty basic to me," he said, jotting something down on the parchment with an ink filled pen. "I know that I wouldn't expect you to know everything. After all, no one knows everything."

"A true Harper response," Zeke said with a frown. "The first thing you should remember about Harpers, Sakura, is that they profess to know everything, but when you actually ask them about something they don't know they say that no one knows everything." As he peered over at the hunched form of Kenji, another image found its way to the front of his mind and he instantly lost his train of thought.

_I miss her too_, Sakura's voice said, reverberating inside of his mind. _Do you think she is okay?_

Though annoyed that she was making a habit out of delving into his mind, he appreciated her decision to keep the conversation between the two of them. While Kenji was a good companion, he had not been through as much as Sakura and himself and could not fully level with them in their grief over the loss of their closest friend. _She is a strong girl and she has amazing motivation. She'll escape the clutches of the man who took her without any problem._

_Then how come she has not returned to us yet?_

_She might be taking a break from all of the trouble we've been through. I'm sure that if she has not returned to the castle and taken up her old responsibilities that she will join us soon._ If he did not tell himself that she would be okay, or that she would return to him in time he was positive that he would fall to pieces. While he would not openly admit to it, he had been quite relieved to have her at his side on their adventure after he had gotten over his irritation that his mother had showed a sign of distrust in him.

Maiya represented so much to him. She embodied bravery and strength, and at the same time kindness and love. Boldly running down her given path with a smile on her face and sword flashing. Only a few women in history had ever symbolized so much, and none to the extent that Maiya did. Zeke began to realize that without her his mission would have ended in failure and most likely his death.

"Is something troubling you, prince?" Kenji asked, noticing his companion's discomfort. While he was in the starting stages of losing his eyesight he was still a perceptive person that could read emotions quite well as long as he had his glasses on to see facial expressions.

Zeke sighed and smiled up at the sky. "Just thinking of better days. That's all," he responded. Giving Sakura a pat on the head, he said with a hint of affection, "I'm starting to see the beauty in everything, and hating less than before because of it. An autumn chill is an ill accepted guest, however the colors of autumn are a pleasantry that can overcome any discomfort."

Kenji crossed something out on his parchment with a frown, but started writing again with a grin. "Are you a poet now? I mean you no disrespect, prince, but words such as those are not usually spoken by someone like yourself."

"My mother was often accused of stealing Nayru's Tongue due to her speech patterns. I wouldn't be surprised if the trait got passed on to me somehow."

"That is impossible," Sakura said, crossing her arms. "Nayru is a Goddess. No one in this world has the power to take her tongue."

"It's an expression, Sakura." Zeke rolled his eyes and took a moment to explain what a metaphor was and what its uses were. When she claimed to understand, he just shook his head and said, "The royalty of Hyrule have been known as wise and intelligent people for ages. Just because I'm not exactly like all of my predecessors doesn't mean that I'm without their wit."

Kenji chuckled. "Wit you say? Is that what you call it?"

"And what's that supposed mean?"

"Nothing really," the Harper said, his attention still on his parchment. "I'm merely implying that you are not always the most tactful person when it comes to…well, anything for that matter."

"Oh? And you have proof?"

"Oh yes, I do. For example, take into consideration the time you tried to scare Sir Calintz and you ended up frightening a little girl whose mother immediately started to beat you with a broom."

Zeke scowled and grunted. That day he had hid inside of a crate and waited for Sir Calintz to do his routine walk through of the square, but a child had opened the crate prematurely and ended the plan after she went to her mom and got her to chase him around the square with her broom. "That wasn't my fault, and for your information that's not a funny story to be thrown out on a whim. I was charged with attempted child molestation and I had to pay a huge fine to the mother and daughter for my actions. The only reason I still have a clean record is because my mother told them that her retarded son was completely incapable of doing such actions on account that he was slow in the head."

"Or perhaps she was only saying that to disguise a hidden love for you?" Kenji suggested.

The two locked eyes for a moment before they turned away to ignore each other. _This is going to be an unpleasant journey_, Zeke thought, wishing that Maiya would return soon. Between answering Sakura's many questions and putting up with Kenji's rude remarks Zeke was feeling mentally exhausted and wanted nothing more than to be rid of at least one of the two problems, and he knew which one he would prefer gone.

"But I'm hungry!" Sakura whined, holding her stomach and moaning as it growled fiercely. "Can I have just a little bit of food?"

Zeke shook his head and stopped one of her hands as it was reaching back to grab the food sack. "No. If you take a little bit you'll just want more and by the time your hunger has been sated you'll have exhausted our entire supply." He smacked her hand again and grabbed her wrists with one of his hands to keep her from trying to grab the food again.

The fairy girl had been complaining about being hungry for quite some time, and both Zeke and Kenji were getting irritated with her complaining. "Perhaps we should tie her to a tree and leave her behind," Kenji suggested. "Without her we would have more food for the two of us and we wouldn't have to look for more until later."

Sakura's eyes became as wide as saucers as she turned around in the saddle and clutched the front of Zeke's tunic. "You cannot do that to me! I do not have wings anymore! I cannot fly! I would never be able to find food!"

With a malevolent grin, Kenji curled his fingers and clawed at Sakura. "Your wings would be useless if you were tied to a tree."

"Zeke!"

"Don't worry," Zeke assured her, patting her head. "If anyone is going to get tied to a tree it's the Harper." The prince scowled as he looked over at Kenji and saw him laughing to himself. "How you could even think about such a thing is beyond me, but it was completely inappropriate."

Kenji rolled his eyes and grinned. "Oh come on. Earlier today you were threatening to turn her back into a fairy. You're quite the hypocrite."

"My intention was to give her a little incentive to quit eating. I didn't want to scare her to the point of becoming irrationally fearful. Apologize."

"What, are you her mother now? I'm not apologizing for being humorous." The look in Zeke's eyes was far from amused and sent chills down his spine. Despite this Kenji laughed. "My, oh my, what have we here? The prince actually cares about someone other than himself? I never thought I'd see the day." Kenji threw back his head and laughed so hard tears came to his eyes. "Did Maiya hit you in the head during your fight? Because this change in your demeanor is most unbecoming of you." He heard Sakura gasp, but before he could decipher the meaning behind it he found himself on the ground with all the air out of his lungs.

"Need I remind you who I am, Harper?" Zeke asked, standing over the blonde with his arms crossed. "I'm the prince of Hyrule. I've grown up knowing nothing but hate and because of the circumstances regarding my birth I have no friends with the exception of the Knights of the Crimson Tears and I would hardly call that a friendship. Wrap all of this together and you have an angry teenager with a short fuse and the power to ruin your life. Now as soon as you're able to breathe again I expect an apology to fall from your lips instead of another crude remark regarding my personality." As he was mounting his horse again, he said, "And for your information I'm quite capable of caring about people other than myself. Next time you see Maiya, be sure to ask her just how much I care about her."

Sitting up, Kenji held his hands above his head and took in a deep breath. "You could have really hurt me."

"That was my intention."

"You couldn't have reprimanded me in a safer form?"

Zeke raised an eyebrow before saying, "Nothing else would have gotten your attention quite so well."

The Harper muttered an apology as he was climbing back into his saddle and they started moving again. "So, prince, how close are you to Maiya anyway?"

"That's none of your business, and this is hardly the time to discuss that." Zeke slowed his horse to a stop and waited as he saw a group of mounted soldiers approaching them with their weapons drawn. "Something seems off."

Readjusting his glasses, Kenji squinted to see ahead of them and chuckled. "Look at these guys. Every single one of them is dressed in older style armor and if I'm not mistaken they have the crest of the Knights of the Flaming Fist on their breast. Who do these jesters think they are?"

As the group of ten men closed in, one of them with a golden helm held his spear at the ready and barked an order for his men to stop. "Who are you three and what is your business out in the field?" he demanded with a growl. From where Zeke waited he could see that the man was fierce incarnate from his angry looking eyebrows to his chiseled facial features.

"I believe we are entitled to the right of privacy," Zeke said, reaching for the pommel of the Master Sword just in case. "Despite that, you should already know who I am." He did not want to be put in a position where he would have to draw the blade that caused him pain every time he wrapped his fingers around the hilt.

The commander's face contorted with anger and he slashed his hand through the air to signal his men to surround the three. "How dare you insult a knight's intelligence?" he asked, infuriated. "Do you know who I am? I am Sir Siegfried, the son of the noble Sir Oswald, the leader of the legendary Flaming Fist knights."

Zeke laughed and looked over at Kenji. "Did you hear that? He's the son of the _noble_ Sir Oswald." If there was one thing that everyone in Hyrule knew about the Flaming Fist knights it was that they were the most disrespectful and dishonest knights that had ever plagued the land. It had become common practice among the people to use the name Oswald to describe someone who was lecherous and self-centered.

"Yes, I did. The _legendary_ Flaming Fist knights," Kenji chuckled but still held a hand at the ready as a precaution. "I once heard my father give a word of _praise_ for that particular group. He was very particular about what words of _glory_ and _honor_ he used."

_Why are you saying something other than what you believe?_ Sakura asked, reading Zeke's thoughts and seeing that he was clearly being sarcastic and rude. _If he is a knight, should you be treating him so?_

Zeke never had a chance to answer because Siegfried thrust a spear right in front of his face and demanded that he reveal his identity at once. "I am Prince Zeke of Hyrule, son of the wise Queen Zelda and fathered by none. Now by order of the prince I order that you lower your weapons." The order fell on deaf ears.

"And you, who are you?"

The Harper gave a short bow and said, "I am Journeyman Kenji of the Harper Hall and son to both Sir Grogh and Lady Midori, although they would probably deny the claim if asked."

"And you?"

"Sakura, daughter of none."

Sir Siegfried glared at each of the three in turn, boring holes into his victim's heads. "It would seem that today is an unfortunate day for us all," he said through clenched teeth as he pulled a poster out of a saddlebag. Unrolling it, he revealed two villainous representations of both Zeke and Kenji. "I have been ordered with the task of killing you all."

"But I am not on that poster," Sakura said, hoping to be exempt from the murder.

"You're a witness, so I have to kill you as well. However, I shall relish the task of killing the offspring of the people who ruined my father's life, especially you, prince." Pulling back his spear, he aimed at Zeke's throat and lunged forward to end his life.

Calmly, Zeke rolled to the side to avoid the attack, taking Sakura and himself over the side of his horse. Ignoring the burning of the hilt, he drew his sword and batted away a couple more spears that were pointed at him and pulled one of the so-called knights out of his saddle, placing his blade to the man's throat. "Still your weapons or this man's breath will be his last," he shouted, watching as the assault slowed.

Kenji had gracefully back flipped off of his horse and likewise had a knight burdened with his blades. "So who issued the order to have us killed, might I ask?"

"Quiet thy witty tongue, Harper," Siegfried barked. "I have no time to bandy words with the likes of you." Turning his attention to Zeke, he smiled wickedly and said, "Every single one of my men is ready to die for me. They see it as an honor to lose their lives in this manner, so your threats are meaningless."

"So you're alright with this guy using you?" Zeke asked the knight he was standing on. "All you are to him is a shield he can use to prolong his pathetic life. Are you really willing to be his puppet?"

The knight started to laugh and said, "I do not fear death, maggot."

Zeke grimaced and let the knight go so he could protect Sakura in case the knights decided to turn the situation around to benefit them. "You are a disgrace to the name of knight."

"Whoops." Kenji's hand had twitched and caused his blade to nick his hostage's neck. The knight grimaced, but otherwise made no other indication that he knew he was bleeding. "Well, Zeke, what now?"

"Oi!"

Everyone's attention was drawn to the forest where a lone man on a horse was coming towards them. A filthy, dark green cloak concealed his identity, and at his side was an elegant looking long sword. As he came closer, Zeke could see a black crescent moon with a blood red tear in its center embroidered onto the cloak.

"What is going on here?" the man asked, placing a gloved hand on the pommel of his sword.

"This is none of your business, peasant," Siegfried growled, pointing his spear at the man. "I would suggest that you leave before I'm forced to deal with you as well." The man drew his sword painfully slow, showing just how weak he was. Before the blade was fully free of the sheath, Siegfried knocked it aside and sent it twirling away to land blade first into the grass. "I'm warning you old man, leave now or die." When the man made no effort to move, Siegfried thrust his spear at him.

With movements that came from years of battling, the man grabbed the spear and jumped at the knight, landing on his shoulders and forcing him to the ground. Then with speed he had not previously shown, he jumped to another horse and, taking off the knight's helmet, hit him on the head a couple times with sharp jabs that knocked him unconscious.

Taking the surprise attack as a cue, both Zeke and Kenji flung themselves at the other knights. With a strong kick, Zeke sent one of the knights flying backwards off of his horse to land on another knight that Kenji had just tripped. It felt strange to be fighting to actually hurt someone for a change. Even when Zeke had been fighting and killing bulbins he had the mentality that they were just beasts, but the knights, though misguided and probably evil, were still human. Putting his personal objections aside, these men did say that they had orders to kill them and anyone that wanted to bring them harm was a threat that had to be extinguished.

"Do not kill these men," the strange man said when he saw Kenji reaching for a sword to use. "They may want to kill you, but you should not stain your hands with their blood for that reason alone." Jumping onto a knight's back, he wrapped an arm around his throat and tightened his grip to restrict the man's breathing until he passed out from lack of oxygen. "Which one of you is the progeny of Oswald?" When Siegfried attempted to stand up, the man kicked him in the chest and sent him back down to the ground. "I did not give you permission to rise." Hunkering down next to the man, he lowered his hood and glared at the knight with dull blue eyes that were becoming closer to a grey color than their original color.

Siegfried's eyes widened with fear as he found himself face to face with the most dangerous man in all of Hyrule, Sir Link of the Crimson Tears. "Sir Link! I should kill you for what you did to my father!"

Link struck the young man across the face to silence him. "I did not say you could talk either," he murmured, scratching his stubble covered chin.

Kenji leaned towards Zeke with a confused look on his face. "That's Sir Link?" he asked quietly, not wanting Link to hear. "He looks…old."

It was true. Even though Link looked as strong as ever, he was showing signs of fatigue and age that came with the withering of one's body. Just the way he kept himself was enough to tell that he was becoming tired of daily rituals. Instead of staying clean shaven he had allowed a thin layer of stubble to infest his face, and he had not purchased a new tunic by the looks of it for many months, merely patching the holes with scraps from other tunics. The man was but a shadow of his former self.

"Not anymore," Zeke answered, feeling repulsed by the change in the legendary man's demeanor. "That's not the Sir Link we heard stories of when we were children. This man is someone else." When Zeke was a child he had spent a lot of time following the knight around and was completely in awe over the man for his well-known acts of valor. Sir Link was a man that every young boy aspired to be like, yet this empty shell was hardly the admirable knight that had graced the land with his incredible swordsmanship and courage.

Link sighed and said, "This area of Hyrule is out of your jurisdiction. You and your family were confined to a limited area and I would suggest you return to it before I am forced to penalize you for your disobedience."

To this Siegfried said nothing, turning his head away. For crimes against the king and his assets, along with the princess and her purity, Sir Oswald and the Knights of the Flaming Fist had been banished to an island that had been a natural stone tower that rose above the Gerudo Desert. It had not been as bad of a punishment as they deserved, for the island was well suited for living and any who lived there would have a comfortable life, but it was still a punishment nonetheless.

To everyone's surprise, Siegfried said, "Yes sir," and made a hand signal that told his knights to mount their horses and to help those who could not rise on their own. Without another word he led his knights away and soon disappeared from sight.

"Poor misguided souls," Link mumbled, crossing his arms. "Their fathers' teachings would be a plague on this land. Hyrule does not need that kind justice."

As Link went over to retrieve his sword, Zeke quickly followed him in order to greet the knight. "Sir Link, it's so good to see you again," he said with a smile, sheathing his sword and rubbing his hand like he usually would after using the Master Sword.

"Is it?" Link asked.

Zeke frowned, but still said, "Of course it is. I haven't seen you in ten years. I didn't even know if you were still alive." Silence followed the statement for Link walked back to his horse and climbed into the saddle, making a motion with his hand that they took as a command to follow him. It was disheartening to see the man in such a state. "Are you going to take us to Ondine?" Zeke asked, hoping to spark a conversation with the man.

"Hai, that I am," he answered. "However, I have an errand to run first, so you will have to be patient."

"What's your errand?"

With a sigh, Link said, "Noèlle has a head cold and she asked me to pick up some special medicine from the Kokiri Village. The village is on the way so we will not be that far off course." Slumped in his saddle, Link led them into the forest where no paths snaked along the ground to guide travelers.

Zeke could feel Sakura shivering fearfully in front of him, and felt the same way about the forest. Many beasts roamed in the darkness of the trees, and few of them were friendly. Not many rumors surrounded the forest since it had been under the ocean for ten years, but just being among the trees was chilling and sent a wave of unease through the travelers.

The only person who seemed unaffected by the gloom was Link, but he was already quite a depressing being so it made sense that his own aura of despair would cancel out the misery of the forest. "Sir Link," Kenji said softly, his voice only carrying as far as it needed to go. "You're looking quite tired. When was the last time you had a good night's rest?"

"Um," Link scratched his head and looked up towards the branches above them. "Four days or so? It is hard to tell because these trees block out the sun." Opening his mouth wide, he yawned and looked over at the Harper. "How are your parents?"

Kenji grimaced at the mention of his mother and father, but smiled all the same. "I have to admit that I couldn't care less how they are, but I don't know where they are. After you were sent to find a way to end the flood, Midori left for whereabouts unknown and Grogh had been offered a job in the smithy in the Goron City. Grogh left me on Master Idarolan's front porch five years ago when I started to become too much for him to handle."

This was far from surprising to Link who had gained a close bond to the two knights at one time. Lady Midori had never truly been the maternal type and the Crimson Tears had secretly taken bets on how soon she would leave Grogh with their accident son so she could go back to the comfortable life of being not pregnant. "Why did your father leave you in the Archives? Surely he could have had bigger hopes for his only son."

"He did, and that's why he left me behind just like Midori did," the Harper murmured, turning his head away to tell Link he was no longer willing to carry on a conversation on the current subject.

"How is _your_ mother, Zeke?" Link asked, taking the hint from Kenji. "Is she still sneaking out in the middle of the night so she can practice her swordplay?"

"_That's_ how she always knows when I sneak out!" Zeke exclaimed, finally figuring out how he failed to get away with a few of his late night adventures. "She knows I'm out because she's sneaking out too. That devious little…"

Link threw a small stone at Zeke to end the string of words coming from his mouth. "That is not an appropriate way to talk about your mother."

Rubbing the back of his head to ease the sharp pain, Zeke said, "I don't really know. She kind of fell apart after she was told I died, but then she saw me for a brief moment when I returned to the castle so I'm guessing she's fine."

"What was that about you dying?" Link asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Well, I wanted to make sure I could move around freely without someone summoning me so I told Calintz to tell mother that I had been killed during a fight with some bulbins." When Zeke saw the world spin and then found himself on the ground next to his horse he was confused as to what happened, and was even more perplexed to see Link standing above him with a fierce glare.

The knight's hand was resting on the pommel of his blade as if it anticipated a fight, twitching out of habit towards the hilt. "You had Calintz tell your mother that you were dead," he said as more of a statement than a question. Picking Zeke up by the front of his shirt, he pushed the prince up against a tree and started to yell at the boy. "_What were you thinking? Do you have any idea what kind of repercussions that could have on the country? If your mother is upset then she is not going to be able to rule this country without putting her feelings into everything! If you thought _your_ life was bad before, just think what it will be like for the next person who does something wrong and faces her judgment! A simple thief who was hungry but lacked the money to pay for a meal will be given the sentence of a murderer and hung a day later!_"

Feeling sorry for Zeke, Kenji tapped Link's shoulder and said, "Queen Zelda was absent from the throne room for a few days, but after she caught a glimpse of Zeke one night and then found a pictograph with his handwriting on it she returned to her duties with a smile."

"Might I add that it was Zeke's idea to leave behind the pictograph?" Sakura said quietly, afraid of angering the knight further.

Staring deeply into Zeke's eyes, Link dropped him and returned to his horse. "I suppose you thought she would break out a bottle of wine and throw a celebration?"

"To be honest, I did." When he approached his horse, Link took the reigns and led it away from the prince. "What are you doing?"

"Since your mother is not here to punish you for your treachery, I will take it upon myself to do it in her absence," Link answered, sending a cold look over his shoulder. "You will walk. While you are walking, you can think about what you have done and you can also think about how much you are inconveniencing us by walking since we will be moving slower."

Walking as a punishment was a joke compared to the cruel things his mother could come up with, but Zeke was not the type to complain when something worked in his favor. On one occasion, after Zeke had been accused of viciously attacking a soldier, Zelda had sentenced him to a week of barracks duty where he spent more than half of his time cleaning and sharpening weapons along with being a training dummy for the female recruits. Another flaw in Link's calculations was that being in a heavily forested area would slow down the horses to the point where walking would be faster, and since Zeke was not usually given the luxury of a horse he was quite accustomed to walking. "Ah man," he said, feigning discomfort.


	24. Chapter 24: Apothecary Blacksmith Knight

Chapter 24: Apothecary, Blacksmith, and Knight

"So who is your little girl friend here?" Link asked, jerking his head towards Sakura. Having been away for ten years, Link was severely behind in news and events and Kenji had been more than happy to fill him in. "She doesn't look like anyone I know, and I know everyone who decided to live in New Castle Town."

Straightening in the saddle, Sakura held herself as respectfully as she could and introduced herself. "I am Sakura, a fairy from the forest who was gifted by the great fairy named Kendra."

Link took a moment to examine the girl, lingering a little longer on her face than was polite. "Fairies turning into humans. First time I've ever heard of something like that." He then started to talk about a forest fairy he had met when he was a child, saying that the fairy was a friendly companion for a little while after he was forced to move away from his home.

Just like many of the older knights that Zeke knew, Link was in possession of amazing stories about his life. As the leader of the Crimson Tears, he was responsible for commanding so many missions that had benefited the country as a whole. A prime example of this was catching the Flaming Fist knights conspiring against the king.

"Can I ride my horse now?" Zeke asked even though he was feeling anything but tired. Climbing over giant tree roots and disappearing in the surrounding foliage was a whole lot more fun than guiding a horse through the trees.

"No," Link said. "You're not done suffering for your treachery yet."

From where Zeke stood he could see very clearly that Link actually thought that the punishment was working to the effect he wanted. For a fearless warrior, Link was a little on the dumb side. Inside of his head, Zeke could hear laughter, but no one around him appeared to be submersed in mirth. _Sakura? Is that you?_

_Forgive me, but I find this amusing,_ she responded, humming innocently. It was fortunate that Link knew nothing of the connection they shared because Zeke was positive that the knight would disapprove of the form of communication since they could say whatever they wanted and it would stay between the two of them. _I think it is funny that you do not feel like you are being punished, yet Sir Link seems to believe that you are enduring something awful._

Zeke smirked because he knew this was true. After making sure Sakura would keep quiet about it, he proceeded to pretend to be miserable. One thing he knew about being punished lightly was that if he were caught faking misery then he would most likely receive a worse sentence.

Despite his reprimand, Zeke was still curious as to what Link had been up to. Looking back in his memory, he had been in the throne room when his mother had sent Link to find a way to end the flood ten years before and after the knight had failed to return home after a few months the prince gave up hope that he would ever see him again. "Link, may I ask you something?"

"You may."

"What took you so long to end the flood?"

This question was not as innocent as Zeke had meant it to be, for Link flinched and hesitated in answering. In order to avoid an awkward conversation, the knight said, "I cannot tell you that at present." He made a big deal over adjusting his hat before adding, "There are many ears in the forest, and very few are friendly."

Link stopped the group in a small clearing with a stump in the center of it. Other than the oddly placed tree base there did not appear to be anything special or mystical about the area, which only went to lessen the knight even more in the group of three's eyes.

"Why'd you stop us here?" Kenji asked, cocking his head to the side. "There is nothing here for us to behold, nor does there appear to be a path for us to follow." Link gave the Harper a critical look and returned to his activities, causing Kenji to scratch his head nervously. "Of course, you know this forest better than I do. You are probably in possession of a certain bit of knowledge that gives you confidence in your decision."

Guessing that he was on thin ice with the knight, Zeke just crossed his arms and waited, hoping Link was still in his right mind. He watched as Link went over and sat on the stump, turning so he was facing a specific direction. With a sweep of one of his feet, Link rolled onto his back and lifted himself up onto his hands so he was doing a handstand on the stump, lightly setting his feet onto the wood and completing a back handspring. Even though he was ten years older than he had been the last time Zeke had seen him, Link was still in incredible shape and retained much of his flexibility.

Whipping out an ocarina, Link started to play a simple tune that reverberated off of the trees around them, causing them to hum. If that phenomenon was not strange enough, a wind started to circle around the clearing and gently swept up leaves and pine needles that were sent swirling in miniature tornados. The tune Link was playing became slightly more complex and as the notes being played escalated in tempo and volume, the wind also rose into a similar crescendo that teased the other three, threatening to blow them over and flip up Sakura's skirt. Though it sounded crazy, they had to believe that it was the music that was causing the wind to act so strangely.

Then, as Link's playing slowed, an old man with a long white beard materialized before them amid one of the cyclones. "Who summons the Sage of Zephyr?" the man asked, his voice as gentle as a summer breeze.

Bowing low at the waist, Link placed a hand over his heart and said, "Sir Link, Knight of the Crimson Tears and emissary of Ondine. My father was Aaron and my mother was Mai."

The old man nodded and turned his grey eyes on the others, gazing at them expectantly. A motion from Link had them stepping forward and mimicking the bow as respectfully as they could.

"Journeyman Harper Kenji. Son of Sir Grogh and Lady Midori of the Crimson Tears."

"Fairy Sakura, daughter of none."

"Zeke, prince of Hyrule. I am the son of Queen Zelda. Fathered by none."

"Very well, you may pass." The old man faded out of existence, and behind him a path opened up in the trees that led deeper into the forest.

"That was Setnel," Link explained, returning to his horse. "He is the guardian of the Kokiri village, a small town that lives in harmony with nature. Its inhabitants are the Kokiri. Do not be deceived for, while they look like children, they are all older than we are."

"I'm sure we can handle ourselves," Zeke said, feeling rather irritated that he and the others were being treated as if they knew nothing of the forest people. Personally, he knew nothing of the forest, but he thought of himself as a fast learner and could not imagine there being anything that would throw him off guard. "Link, can you tell me something?"

"That would depend on the nature of your request," Link responded,

"The flood just ended. How is it that there is a village in the forest that has been colonized so quickly?" Zeke waited to see if Link would answer this question, and was glad when the knight's mouth opened and a real answer fell from his tongue.

"Unlike us humans, the other beings of the country that had to move have been planning from the very start to return to their homes as soon as the flood was over. Instead of building new cities and permanent buildings, they have made do with a simple life in hopes that they would one day return to their original stomping grounds."

Intrigued by the subject, Kenji decided to ask, "So they have been surviving on the bare minimum for eighteen years?"

"Yes and no." Link then explained that even though the citizens of the Kokiri Village were nature lovers and that they made a living off of the land, quite a few were rather affluent thanks to shrewd business transactions in the human cities. "Many of the village people are apothecaries and make good money mixing potions and other such things that heal aches and pains. Others are sculptors and artists, taking inspiration from things they see in nature to create masterpieces that nobles and aristocrats pay top dollar for. The rest are simply tailors who make exquisite patterns using whatever material they can find. I actually own a pair of socks made by a small time merchant who guaranteed they would keep my feet warm in even the most extreme cold. I have yet to test his claim, but I have no desire to go anywhere near the frozen north.

"Anyway, due to their wealthy lifestyles, they live on anything but the bare minimum." Continuing to answer Zeke's question, Link said, "For some reason, we humans think we can recreate the things we have, lessening the value of portraits and statues. Other beings place great value in their history. Outside the village there is a cave where the history of the Kokiri is depicted with carvings and murals that were preserved in the stone walls. This cave is important, and is only one of many things that the people wanted back."

"They've waited for eighteen years to return to their homes?" Zeke asked, appalled by the thought. Personally, he could not think of anything he cherished so much that he would wait more than a couple days to see again, let alone two generations.

_What about Maiya?_

_I'll wait for an eternity to see her again_.

"We have arrived," Link announced, breaking through the prince's thoughts. "Welcome to the Kokiri Village, the village of merchants."

Beyond the trees, there stood a handful of homes, or trees. Zeke could not tell the difference. The structures looked like trees, but they were large and short with windows and doors. Being distracted by the odd homes, he was unaware that a group of twenty or more children had gathered around them.

"Sir Link," one of them said, his hands on his hips. "What brings you to our village?" This villager had a pompous aura about him that the others seemed to shy away from. Just by the way he presented himself it was apparent that he was a self-righteous person.

Pointing to a log cabin on the edge of the village, Link said, "I believe a friend of mine lives here." He pushed passed the Kokiri and motioned for the others to follow him. Clearly, Link had met this Kokiri in the past and had built up an immunity to his king-like attitude.

"Hold it!" The Kokiri stepped in front of Link again and held up a hand to stop the knight. "I've told you before, you're not welcome here!" Reaching behind him, he pulled out a short belt knife and slashed it in the air threateningly.

With a swift kick, Link knocked the knife away, shooting forward and lifting the pint-sized man by the front of his shirt. "Mido, I've told_ you_ before. I don't like having weapons thrust in my face. Now go sit on your fake throne and mind your own business." He dropped the Kokiri and continued walking towards the cabin.

"How do you know this apothecary?" Kenji asked, keeping an eye on the Kokiri named Mido.

During Link's exchange with the Kokiri, Zeke turned to Sakura and covertly asked, _Can you tell me how these houses are made, Sakura?_

_It is a tedious task that requires five magicians_, Sakura explained, saying that the magicians had to cast a spell to shape a tree into a home while making sure the tree lived through the process. _Each of these trees is alive; they have just been manipulated to take on these forms you see before you. For as long as someone lives inside of the tree, it will continue to grow until a magician is brought to it so they can cast the final spell that will stunt its growth. It is an art practiced by an exclusive group of magic wielders that call themselves the Hearts of Nature. These homes are very old and none of them are growing anymore, so they have probably been here for many years._

"If I told you that, you would probably turn around right now and return to New Castle Town." Zeke had not been paying much attention to Kenji and Link, but something had caught his interest when Link made it sound like the Harper had an emotional attachment to the person they were going to see.

"Who are we going to see?" Zeke asked, moving his feet quickly so he could keep up with Link's horse. "How does Kenji know him?"

It was obvious Link could not care less about Kenji's reservations, for he said, "The man we are going to see is an old friend of mine who runs two very successful businesses here in Hyrule. His medicines are some of the best made by hand, and the blades he forges are second to none. The man's name is Grogh, a retired knight of the Crimson Tears, and Kenji's father."

"Grogh?" Kenji's voice croaked. Judging from the look on the Harper's face, the prince assumed that the young man was terrified of this turn of events. With his skin paling and his eyes widening, Kenji was obviously in more discomfort than he was used to. "Grogh is the apothecary you're going to?"

"Yes," Link said, giving Kenji a strong gaze. "And you're coming with us. It's about time you two put your differences behind you and act the way a father and son should. With your mother gone, he's the only family you have left and with your wedding on the horizon you'll want at least one parent there to give you their blessing. Such is the way it should be." Link broke through a wave of objections and convinced Kenji that it would be good for him. "If _I_ had a child I would do everything in my power to make sure I didn't lose them."

"I wish my father was like that," Zeke said quietly, exchanging a glance with Sakura who could feel his sorrow just as strongly as he could.

Kenji became so rigid that his mouth was locked in place and Link's patience had run out, ending the conversation with no hope of recovery. However, Sakura with her undeveloped social skills did not catch the hint and blindly asked, "So what's Sir Grogh like?"

Seeing that neither Link nor Kenji was planning on making any effort to answer, Zeke rolled his eyes and did it instead. "From what I know about him, Grogh was Link's second in command when he was a knight. He was fair-minded and a hard worker that could accomplish any task he set himself to. After he was injured in the battle with Ardor he was forced to retire from being a knight and he started to study medicine. Of all the knights of the Crimson Tears, he is the most successful."

"That's not entirely true," Link said as he stretched his back. "Technically, Brudegan is the most successful of the Crimson Tears knights. Using magic and some skills he learned from the rest of us, he has become a wealthy businessman. But he donates a large portion of his earnings to the Arcane Hall to make sure the mages and sorceresses of the future have someone to teach them how to use their skills."

"Back to Grogh," Zeke murmured. "Some things you'll notice right away are that he is a big man. He stands taller than most men and his years as a smith have really built his muscles to incredible stature." Sakura asked how the knight had been injured, but Zeke did not have the answer. Looking over at Link in hopes that he would speak up, the prince was quite surprised to hear Kenji open his mouth to relay the information.

It was a gruesome tale, but at the same time heroic. The battle had fallen in Ardor's favor and the Knights of the Crimson Tears had been ordered to change the circumstances by any means necessary. They were not allowed to fail.

Sabotage was the only answer, so in the middle of the night, Link, Grogh, Roland, and Brudegan snuck into the enemy encampment dressed in Ardor's colors so they could bypass the night watch without arousing suspicion. The men had split up, Link went to assassinate a few of the tacticians and leaders, Grogh went to destroy weapons, Roland joined a group of soldiers who were drinking to learn of their plans, and Brudegan poisoned the food supply.

Link was successful in his mission and found Roland at the rendezvous with Brudegan, but Grogh was nowhere to be seen. There was a commotion inside of the encampment and they ran to see what was going on, praying that their friend was not involved. Grogh had been captured and was presented before a leader who immediately started to cut him and do unspeakable things to him. Link and the others rushed forward to save their fellow knight and returned to their camp using Farore's Wind.

"After he was fixed up there was no lasting physical damage," Link said, finishing the story. "However, he endured mental trauma that left him with unforgettable scars. I let him fight in the final battle a week later, but afterwards I made him step down because he needed time to heal.

"Despite being healed by powerful magic, he suffered from unexplainable pain that would leave him incapable of even walking. It was after his second episode that he decided to pursue a life of medicine in hopes that he would find a cure or at least a suppressant for his ailment."

"That is horrible," Sakura gasped, shuddering uncomfortably. "Humans can be so cruel to each other."

Link grunted his approval of the statement and said, "We are by no means perfect, and we are not above killing each other to gain something we want." An expression of painful reflection appeared on the knight's face and he said no more on the subject. "Grogh's home is just ahead of us. I won't be long with my business. We should be back on our way to Ondine in a little while."

*

From what Zeke could see, Link had knocked on the door with a specific rhythm that he assumed was a special code that the Crimson Tears had developed for situations just like this one. However, there was a downside to this theory. As the door opened to reveal a beast of a man, it was clear that the former knight had not been expecting to see his old comrade before him.

"Link? Is it really you?" Grogh asked, holding onto the doorframe for support. If it had not been for the drop of his guard, Zeke was sure that the man would have been a fearsome figure to behold.

The two men shook hands and smiled over the reunion blissfully. Apparently these two knights had not been in touch since Link's departure. "Hai, old friend. It is I. Along with Prince Zeke, the fairy Sakura, and Journeyman Harper Kenji."

The change in Grogh's demeanor was so quick that it was alarming. Everyone stepped aside except for Kenji who stared at his father blandly, completely unsure of how to take the situation. "Hey, dad."

As if no one had even been on his doorstep, Grogh turned and slammed his door shut behind him, locking the door with a plethora of clicks and sliding noises. Looking over at Link, Zeke said, "That went well," and sat down on a stump in front of the house. "What did you do to make him so irrational, Kenji?" Realizing early that the comment would be ill accepted, Zeke ducked just in time to dodge Kenji's blade as it passed over him to stick in the side of Grogh's house. "Careful or your dad will come out and kick your ass for putting a hole in his wall."

"Enough, Zeke," Link growled, taking the youth by the hair and lifting him to his feet. "This is hardly constructive." Heading around the house, he gave the two boys a fierce stare before saying, "I'm going to try talking to him again. Don't kill each other while I'm gone."

After Link left, Kenji retrieved his blade and started to stab the ground angrily, mumbling a series of curses and obscenities that seemed completely unlike the Harper. "That man doesn't care about anything but his accursed medicines! He never wanted to be a father, why did I even bother getting my hopes up that he had changed?"

Sakura and Zeke watched as the young man paced back and forth between two points, thrusting a blade into the dirt every few steps while ranting so fast that it was hard to understand what he was saying. The longer he was left to himself the more intense Kenji's outburst became. "And how can he just live his life without thinking of mom _or_ me?! That bastard!"

Realizing that Kenji was drawing the attention of everyone who walked by, Zeke cautiously tried to get him to relax. "Kenji, maybe you should sit down. You're kind of drawing a crowd."

"Like I care about what people think," Kenji snapped, glaring at the strangers wildly. "None of these people know me."

"Quit making a fool of yourself and come inside," Link said from the door, having successfully talked Grogh into being hospitable. Waiting by the door until everyone had entered the home, Link shook his head and muttered, "Kids these days," and then closed the door.

Wondering how Link had talked the stubborn man into opening his home to them, Zeke was shocked to see a fist sized bruise on Grogh's shoulder. _So that's Link's way of convincing someone to do what he wants_.

"Make yourselves at home or whatever," the man said gruffly, exiting the room through a back door. "Link, come."

After the two adults had left Zeke dropped into a comfortable looking chair and regarding Kenji with a thoughtful stare. "I know it's not any of my business," he said carefully, not wanting to anger the Harper any more. "But what happened between you and your dad? I remember seeing you quite happy with both of your parents around the time we were six. I thought you would have a nice life."

Ignoring the urge to strike Zeke, Kenji growled deep in his throat and threw himself onto a couch. "Truth be told I should have had a great life, even compared to you." With a grimace he told his tale, feeling that if he kept the information to himself his allies would not find him trustworthy. "After the queen sent Link away to find a way to end the flood he was going to disband the Crimson Tears, but Sir Calintz assured him that he could handle the responsibility of being their leader and took up the position. If it had not been for Grogh's insecurities about his condition he would have gladly taken the title, but I know he would have been a good leader regardless.

"No one knows why Midori left, but she did it in the middle of the night. I caught her in the act. She looked me in the eye and lied to me, saying she was just up to get something to eat. I never saw her again. Grogh and I were left to fend for ourselves since she had been the sole supporter of our family. With his discomfort of his condition, Grogh was very cautious working the forge while he was in the Goron City. Coupled with his inadequacy in making medicines he was left no way of supporting us on his own.

"So, the only solution we could come up with was for me to become a knight just like he had."

This last part was the biggest surprise to Zeke. Having an incredible amount of respect for the Crimson Tears, it was infuriating that one of the fold had been reduced to relying on his child for support. As the most decorated knights, they should have been given everything they needed without even asking for it.

"It went well for a little while. I was a quick learner and I showed great promise to Councilman Godric, but I lacked a crucial element that kept me from being accepted as an apprentice. While the other kids my age were training hard with Brudegan and Fandarel, I was more interested in reading about our greatest legends. Grogh saw no problem with this. After all, I was researching Azel and a great many other important people in our country's history, but the other knights were disappointed with my resolve. Distracted by my studies, I could not focus on sparring and got a plethora of bruises.

"Long story short, Grogh became angry with me that I wasn't trying hard enough and after I triggered one of his seizures he took me to New Castle Town and left me in the Archives so I wouldn't ruin his reputation anymore." Shrugging somberly, Kenji laced his fingers together and twiddled his thumbs in his lap. "We haven't spoken to each other since."

"That's sad," Sakura mumbled, leaning into Zeke unintentionally. "If my parents left me somewhere and never wanted to see me again I think I would cry."

Both Zeke and Kenji stared at the girl with strange looks in their eyes. "You have parents?" Zeke asked. From what he had gathered in his conversations with the fairy child, she had no parents or anyone that she considered family. Now that the subject had come up he had to admit that he had no idea how fairies were born in the first place.

"Of course I have parents," Sakura said, her lips forming a solid line. "Or, at least, I had parents." Many images appeared in her mind, and through their connection, Zeke saw every single one. "My parents were both guardian fairies, but they were not bound to anyone. Instead they inhabited a fountain where the great fairy Fatina lived and they offered their help to her. Shortly after I was born I was chosen to be a guardian fairy and they had to give me up so I could be taught everything I needed to know." The bitterness in her voice was unmistakable, and all of a sudden it donned on Zeke that they all shared a dysfunction in their families. "They approached me years later to tell me what happened, and I thought everything would be fine but I was sent to help Zeke and never got a chance to spend time with them."

"So everything's my fault then," Zeke stated, crossing his arms and frowning. "Why does everything have to be my fault?"

At this Sakura gasped and shook her head vigorously, grabbing onto Zeke's tunic firmly. "I do not blame you for anything. I am quite happy that I got to meet you and I would not want things to be any different than they are now." In order to enforce her words she gave her friend a hug and continued to say that it was not his fault that she had been forced away from her parents.

The prince just sighed and gave the girl a pat on the head.

*

Leaning against the wall of Grogh's business area, Link stared flatly at the man who was angrily grinding something into dust. "Grogh, you are being ridiculous," he said with as little enthusiasm imaginable. "Kenji was reluctant to come here, but at least he put his discomfort aside in hopes that you two could make amends. At the end of everything, he's still your son."

Frustrated, Grogh pounded a fist on the table in front of him and turned to stoke the fire in his forge, having been working on something when Link had knocked on his door. Pulling the metal rod out of the fire, he began to pound on it with a hammer with such ferocity that there seemed to be an endless cloud of sparks surrounding him. "You shouldn't have brought him here," he growled.

"Well then I'll be quick with my business. Queen Noèlle of Ondine requires some medicine and my wallet goes deep. I don't care how much you charge me for it, but prepare it promptly so I can get out of your way."

"I thought Noèlle was supposed to be a divine being of sorts," Grogh murmured, setting his project down once again for Link's sake. "Isn't she immune to illness?"

Link shook his head and took a peach from a bowl to his left. "She made a deal with the Goddesses. She gave up her immunities in order to be given the privilege of venturing outside of her city. After returning from a trip with that man Enigma she contracted some sort of head cold. Symptoms include sinus pressure, runny nose, coughing, fever, migraines, and blurriness of vision. Do you have anything for something like that?"

Grogh grimaced as Link bit into what was supposed to be his lunch, but then went to a large cabinet that was the furthest object from the forge. "I can't prescribe anything without seeing the symptoms myself. I'll have to go to Ondine and see her."

At this Link smirked. "You're going to come with me to Ondine?"

"I don't see what choice I have," Grogh mumbled, tossing herbs and other medical supplies into a bag. "I'm not an expert on medicine, so I can't just come up with a cure for named symptoms."

"You'll come with Zeke, Sakura, Kenji, and myself?"

A wave of frustration rippled across the man's face as he was confronted by a daunting prospect. The fairy girl and the prince he could deal with, but the other… "I don't see what choice I have," he repeated through clenched teeth, throwing his bag at Link for him to carry.

With an accomplished grin Link placed the half eaten fruit back in the bowl he found it in and walked out of the back room. "Pleasure doing business with you."

*

To say that the trip to Ondine was uncomfortable would be an understatement. Having his father outwardly denying him, Kenji kept his mouth closed and his head down to avoid being noticed by anyone. Sakura was still curious about Grogh and was asking Zeke a torrent of questions via their mind connection, and the process of conjuring the thoughts tied up Zeke's tongue and rendered him silent.

"So," Link said smoothly, looking back at Zeke. "When Enigma approached me to ask me if I would help you he mentioned that you had been traveling with a girl before Kenji joined you. Who was she?"

When Zeke looked up he was sure that Link already knew the answer to his own question. The knight had a smug look on his face and his eyes were slightly narrowed in a way that was facetious. Not quite wanting to give the man any satisfaction, the prince just smiled and said, "Her name is Maiya. She's the number one student under Sir Terence and she is my swordplay teacher. She's kind of a nut, though. That girl takes fighting way to seriously and in a sickeningly optimistic way. She reminds me a bit of my mom, stiff necked, you know?"

"She's not the only one who's stiff," Link murmured just loud enough for Zeke to hear, smiling wickedly when the prince's cocky smirk was wiped clean off his face.

Kenji and Grogh both looked at Zeke with shockingly similar expressions that proved the link between them while Sakura looked around with a clueless look about her. Ignoring the statement, Zeke's mouth twisted into a sidewise smile as he thought up a quick comment of retaliation. "Speaking of girls," he said with the same tone Link had. "I saw a picture of you at the castle with the Queen of Ondine and my mother. They were both kissing you. Care to explain?"

Unfortunately for Zeke, Link was a quicker thinker than he was and let no apparent discomfort to appear. "That old pictograph? It's nothing. Noèlle has always been a tease, and your mother was just copying her."

"Ah, I see." In order to change the subject, Zeke decided to delve into the knight's past once again. "Link, you wielded the Master Sword, right?" he asked slowly, feeling inadequate compared to the knight. The question he wanted to ask would reveal that he had been deemed unworthy of the legendary blade.

"Yes, many years ago. Why?"

Wrapping his hand with a cloth first, Zeke pulled the Master Sword from his belt and held it out for Link to take. "What did you do to prove yourself to the sword?"

Link hesitantly reached out and took the sword. Its weight was all too familiar for him, and the sword seemed to resonate with what he thought could only be happiness. "I fought the previous master of the sword and won." He offered Zeke the sword, but the prince held up a hand to disclaim the weapon. "What's wrong?"

"The sword burns my hand every time I touch it."

With a smirk, Link drew his sword and gave it to Zeke, sliding the Master Sword into his sheath. "Take my sword then."

"It won't be a substitute for the one I helped make," Grogh said, watching the trade sadly. "What happened to the blade that was made for your birthday?"

"It was shattered by dark magic." Zeke took the elegant looking sword and weighed it experimentally. It was heavy, much too heavy for Zeke. "How am I going to use this? It weighs a ton."

Depressed that a piece of his work had been broken, Grogh rode up next to Zeke and took his left hand. "A heavy sword can become lighter if you work with it," he said as he made Zeke hold the sword in that hand and wrapped cloth around it to keep his fingers wrapped around the hilt. "This sword is now a part of your body. You will not be allowed to let go of the sword until Link or I say you can. Tomorrow you will begin training."

Looking at Grogh, then his hand, Zeke started to shift his gaze between everyone present. Kenji started to laugh, but his father approached him and he went silent. When the man started to do the same to him, he started to object and fought against the hands, but Grogh was much stronger than he was and he was forced into submission.

"You have forgotten much of your training, idiot. You too will undergo training with Zeke."

"But these blades were blessed by a great fairy," Kenji said angrily. "They're so sharp I could cut through stone without feeling a thing." To demonstrate this, he slashed at a tree and cut through a thick branch that crashed behind him. "I can't sleep with these!"

Grogh grabbed Kenji's wrist and forced him to hit himself in the leg with his blades. When his leg failed to bleed, Grogh smacked him in the back of the head and frowned. "If a great fairy blesses a weapon, the blade will not cut the owner. Idiot."

"Why do I have to go through training?" Zeke asked as he held the sword up in front of him.

This time Link spoke up. "Because you were taught by a novice swordswoman. You were not a good enough swordsman to fend off the man who kidnapped her, and you are not even capable of wielding the Master Sword," he said darkly, mocking the prince and putting him in his place. "Right now, you are in the company of two of the most skilled knights in Hyrule. Consider yourself fortunate. If you want to go off on a quest, you'll need what we have to teach you."

_I don't feel all that fortunate_, Zeke said inside of his head, moaning as his left shoulder was already starting to feel the strain of having the heavy blade strapped to his hand. Placing the blade in his lap to reduce the weight he was being forced to carry, he rubbed his temple with his free hand and reassured himself that, though torture was in his future, it was all going to help him in his goal to becoming the most powerful warrior in Hyrule.


	25. Chapter 25: Queen Noelle

Chapter 25: Queen Noèlle

"If I thrust my sword at you, what can you do to avoid me and then strike me?" Link asked as they traveled through the forest. For hours he had been testing Zeke on battle tactics in order to assess the prince's skill. After just a few questions it had become quite obvious that, when she had taught Zeke, Maiya had allowed him to embrace his instincts instead of teaching him a set discipline.

Realizing that he was failing to impress the knight, Zeke started to use all of his brainpower in coming up with answers. It had not been a difficult task, but Link always had a counter to his answer. "Well, I could spin to the side and attempt to strike you with a horizontal slash." Zeke felt a rock hit him in the back of the head and softened the already bruised skin even more. In order to stay entertained during the quizzing, Grogh had picked up a handful of small rocks that he would throw at Zeke whenever the prince gave an answer that would result in him being cut to pieces by his opponent. Rubbing the back of his head, Zeke spun in his saddle and glared at Grogh. "What's wrong with _that_ one?"

Grogh cleared his throat and said, "If you spin around, you may dodge the initial strike, but a master swordsman will be able to foresee this maneuver and he will be able to counter by ducking below your sword and cutting you down from your knees. Also, a warrior should never turn his back to his enemy."

"A _master swordsman_ would foresee it!" Zeke shouted, throwing his arms up. "I'm a novice swordsman! If I go up against a master then I'm going to die, end of story!" He felt another rock hit him and he hissed as the already present bruise throbbed once more. "Goddesses curse these men!"

"Come on, guys," Kenji said as he continued to stare at the swords that he could not remove from his hands. "Zeke needs time to cultivate his skills or he will never learn anything. Just take it slowly or he'll be so confused the next time he fights that he'll make a mistake and get hurt."

Grogh aimed a rock at his son, but Link held up a hand to stall his movement. "Kenji's right," Link said, earning a reproachful glance from the smith-doctor. "Zeke would learn better from first hand experience opposed to textbook explanations." Jumping down from his horse, he drew the Master Sword and advanced on the prince. "Hold up your blade and fight me."

With his mouth hanging open, Zeke stared at the knight as he came closer with his blade drawn. Panicking, he jumped off of his horse's saddle and climbed into the tree above him. It was a difficult task with one of his hands tied to a sword, but he managed to get high enough for Link to stop approaching him.

"Coward," Link called up into the tree.

"A coward I may be, but I like being alive." Continuing to climb, Zeke reached the top of the tree and looked ahead to see where they were. Below, the branches were so thick that little light managed to make it to the forest floor, and it was difficult to determine whether it was day or night. From his perch at the top of the tree, Zeke could see an old city beyond a large chasm. The city looked like it had been in the middle of a catastrophic battle. Most of its buildings had been struck by something that either left large holes in the walls or completely reduced them to rubble. It was a depressing sight, but there was one thing about it that still appeared magnificent. Standing in the northern sector of the city was a magnificent cathedral that towered over the destruction like a beacon of hope.

"What are we looking at?"

Zeke flinched, grabbing onto a branch to keep himself in the tree. "Sakura, don't do that. I could have fallen." Repositioning himself on the branch he was sitting on, Zeke gave his fairy-girl a pat on the head and plucked a leaf out of her hair. "If I'm not mistaken," he said, pointing at the city. "I believe that is Ondine over there."

"Really?" Sakura leaned forward and tilted her head to the side. "It looks so sad. Like it is empty and it wants people to come live in it."

As they were looking towards the city, a bolt of lightning streaked down from the sky and struck the ground near the edge of the city. From their high vantage point, Zeke and Sakura could hear a voice cry out in shock.

"What was that?" Link yelled up into the tree, holding his hands around his mouth so that his voice would carry.

Both Zeke and Sakura started to climb down the tree while the prince explained that lightning had struck. "We heard someone scream. It sounded like a woman." Link swore and jumped onto his horse, disappearing down the path with his cloak whipping out behind him. Zeke dropped down from the tree, missing his horse and falling to the dirt. "What's up with him?"

Donning an understanding expression, Grogh said, "There are very few people in Ondine right now, and only one of them is a woman." He scratched his horse behind the ears and told it to get moving, carrying him down the same path that Link had taken.

"Zeke, hold out your arms," Kenji muttered as he lightly kicked his horse into a trot and left the prince behind.

"Why?" Just moments after asking, Sakura fell into his arms with a high-pitched squeal. "Oh, you okay Sakura?" he asked as he set her on her feet.

The fall had scared Sakura and it took some coaxing to get her to let go of him. "I-I am f-fine. L-let us g-go see what happened." With Zeke's help, she climbed onto the horse and waited for Zeke to climb up behind her. "Who do you think screamed?"

"I guess we'll find out."

*

As Zeke and Sakura neared the end of the bridge that crossed over the chasm, they could see Link sitting and supporting a woman with curly black hair. Getting closer, they could hear the words that were being spoken, and they were not pleasant.

"Link, is that you?" the woman asked. "I'm afraid my eyes have failed me."

"Yes, Noèlle. It's Link."

The woman slowly reached up with her hand and stroked Link's cheek softly, a smile appearing on her lips. "I'm so sorry, Link. I saw something in the trees, and I wanted to take a look, but I stepped outside the gate…"

Taking the hand, Link helped Noèlle sit up and told her to stop talking. Three feet to his left was a black circle that was smoking like as if it had been struck by something incredibly hot. "Noèlle, you know what Din said about that. She's not the most forgiving Goddess."

"I don't think I'm going to make it, Link." Tears started streaming down her pale cheeks as she started to cough off to the side. "It hurts so much…"

Link's eyes became wide and fear could be seen in his weathered blue eyes. "She took your immortality? Noèlle, please, you have to hold on!" Desperate, he looked around him for some sort of medicine that would heal the woman of all her pain. "Grogh, do you have anything?!"

"I'm sorry, Link," Grogh murmured. "I have nothing that can stop death."

"Link, do not make my passing sad," Noèlle whispered, gazing into his eyes. "If I may, may I ask of you one favor?"

"Anything, Noèlle."

"Before I die…kiss me."

Link shoved the woman away from him and stood up, brushing dirt off of his pants. "She's fine."

The other four humans gawked at Link and turned their attention to the woman on the ground, becoming increasingly worried about her.

Rising to her feet so quickly that her hair bounced above her head, Noèlle took in a deep breath and screamed, "What the hell was that for?!" She jumped onto Link's back and started to hit him on the head, wrapping an arm around his neck so he could not push her off. "Is that how you treat a dying woman?! Not to mention a _beautiful_ dying woman?! It's no wonder why girls don't like you!"

Link managed to slip out of her grasp, but she picked up a small tree branch and started chasing him around with it.

"That's Noèlle, the queen of Ondine?" Kenji asked, pointing at the immature woman who was beating Link with her branch. For a being that was hundreds of years old, she acted like a child.

Suddenly, Noèlle fell to her knees and started coughing so hard that she had to hold herself. Link knelt down next to her and gave her back a pat. "Are you okay, Noèlle?" he asked, helping her back to her feet.

She nodded and cleared her throat, saying that she was fine. "So who are these people?" Walking over to Zeke, she crossed her arms and gave him a flirty gaze. "You look familiar. Have we met before?"

Zeke shook his head and gulped, feeling himself getting lost in her golden eyes. "No, I don't think we have." He began to feel strange, as if a fog was clouding his thoughts. Inside, he knew that the longer he held the woman's gaze the worse it would become, but there was something about her golden eyes that made it impossible for him to look away.

One of her eyebrows rose and she giggled. "Of course, you are the poor young man who had a sword put through him. You wouldn't remember me because you were sleeping whenever I was around." Taking his chin, she turned his head slightly and followed his jaw line with a finger. "So you're Zelda's son, eh? You have your mother's nose, and your eyes are similar in shape, they remind me of almonds. Although, that vacant expression you have right now is definitely your father's."

The haze that had been gathering in his mind was lifted and Zeke took a hold of the front of her dress, pulling her face right in front of his. "You knew my father? Who was he?" The woman's eyes started to roll back in her head and she had a funny expression on her face that Zeke thought might be her way of mocking him, but then she sneezed in his face and, as a result of the shocking action, he let go of her.

Straightening her dress, Noèlle ignored him and went over to Kenji. She looked at him for two seconds before saying, "You're boring." Then she turned her attention to Sakura and became even more intrigued than when she had looked at Zeke. "What have we here?" she said quietly, bending down to examine the shorter girl's face. "Your ears, your eyes, you're not human, are you, little bug?"

Zeke regarded the woman critically. _Little bug?_

Sakura scratched her head, wondering what the woman meant. "I am too a human. The great fairy Kendra said so." Worried that Kendra had done something to make her appear inhuman, she started examining herself for anything that looked out of place.

Noèlle found this amusing, letting out a chuckle that turned into a cough. Taking Sakura's hands in hers, she got the girl's attention and winked, saying, "You can change your outer appearance all you want, but your heart will remain the same no matter what, fairy girl." With Sakura's hand still in hers, Noèlle turned to Grogh and gave him a deep bow. "I'm glad you could come, Sir Grogh. I always considered you to be great company."

The apothecary returned the bow, saying, "It's always a pleasure to be in the presence of royalty, your highness. However, I must implore that you take us to your home so I can treat you."

"Of course," she said, everyone noticing that her voice sounded congested. "My home is just over yonder." As they started walking towards the lone house on a street that had no other buildings on it, Noèlle looked over at Zeke and gave him a sympathetic expression. "I'm sorry about what happened to Maiya."

_First my father, and now my friend_, Zeke thought, irritated. _How does she know so much?_

"I know it must be tough to have someone around who knows all the answers to your questions," Noèlle said, ignoring the surprised look on his face. "But some things are just better left unknown."

"Noèlle, stop it." Link gave the woman a swat on the back of her head and opened the door to her home, striding in with incredible familiarity. "Let Zeke's thoughts be his own." He pushed the woman into a comfortable looking chair and threw a blanket around her shoulders to keep her warm. "Need anything?"

This was the most shocking thing Zeke had encountered since leaving home. Link, the leader of the Crimson Tears, the most dangerous man in all of Hyrule, was catering to this woman's needs. "Unbelievable," he mumbled as he leaned against a wall next to Sakura, who was still trying to find what it was about her that gave away her true nature.

Kenji leaned towards Zeke and reminded him why they were there, telling him that there was no better time than the present to ask her about the crystal force. Just mentioning the object made Sakura look at her feet and anywhere else but at Zeke. He knew she had seen his thoughts, but he did not care what she thought. Power was what he wanted, and he had good reasons as to why.

Clearing his throat before speaking, Zeke stepped forward and said, "Noèlle, I would like to ask you something about your past."

Both Grogh and Link scowled at the prince, one of them tossing a book at him. Noèlle reached out for the book with a cry of anguish, groaning when it hit Zeke. "Noèlle is very sick, Zeke," Link said sternly, pushing Noèlle back into her seat when she stood up to retrieve her book. "Your questions can wait until she's feeling better."

Noèlle started to object, but Grogh forced her to drink something he had pulled out of his bag, making her go into a fit of coughing. "Once your coughing stops, I can give you an infusion of ginseng and mushrooms from the forest. This will strengthen your immune system so you'll be able to fight the illness on your own. There's not much I can do to help with your congestion. I would suggest drinking herbal teas with mint leaves."

Link helped Noèlle up the stairs so she could lie in a bed, leaving the others down in her living room. Zeke, angry that he was being forced to wait for answers, went outside and left the others. When Link came back, he said that they should all get some rest, and so he showed the others to rooms where they could stay. Noticing that Zeke was outside, Link opened a window and said, "You and Kenji will be sharing a room."

The prince ignored the knight and tried to cross his arms, an awkward task with a sword attached to his left hand. "I'll lay my head where I please, Link." In order to show Link that he was done speaking with him, he turned his back to the knight and started to walk away. In all honesty, he was more interested in seeing the city.

When he was little, he would occasionally hear his mother talking about Ondine, but he knew very little about the city. What he did know was that Noèlle was the queen, and that she and her group of ten subjects were considered to be Ondinians, the term that had been adopted to declare their independence from Hyrule. Apart from that, he knew that there was a trade going between Hyrule and Ondine that involved exchanging goods for supplies to help restore the city. It was more than most people knew, but it was still inadequate.

Feeling whimsical, Zeke turned and started to walk down what appeared to be a main street that led deeper into the city. He wanted to get a closer look at the cathedral he had seen when he was in the trees. It was a magnificent piece of architecture and it seemed to be the only building that had not suffered any damage over the many years.

"May I join you, young prince?" Zeke turned and saw Noèlle standing a few feet away from him, an open window above her.

"Sure," he said. "I guess having company wouldn't hurt."

The woman smiled and walked over to him, linking her arm with his like an escort. "It never hurts to have company." They started walking, and she said, "I apologize that my city doesn't quite share the same splendor of Castle Town. I don't have very many people helping me restore it."

"Castle Town's not that great," Zeke murmured, closing his eyes halfway as irritation of just the thought came to him. "The buildings are too close together and it's easy to get lost if you don't know your way around." Turning a mockingly interested eye on the woman next to him, he asked, "How did you know about Maiya?" His questioning stare was mirrored on the woman's face.

Making a thoughtful noise in her throat, Noèlle shrugged and said, "After Enigma saved her, she was brought here. She was quite worried about you. Such a loving girl."

"Where is she now?" He wanted to believe that she was still around, but he knew just from the way Noèlle was talking that she had left. When she told him that Maiya had left a few days before, he frowned and left the topic behind.

"So what brings you to my city?" Noèlle asked, hopping over some rubble. "I've been trying to get your mother to bring you and your sister here for years, but your mom is always so busy." After appearing to have thought about it quite hard, she then added, "I think she's afraid I'll corrupt you or something."

Before Zeke could question her on the subject, a strange man approached them and ended the conversation briefly. "My queen, we have just finished cleaning the library," he said with a deep voice that demanded authority. "Where would you like us to get to work next?" While this man and Noèlle discussed fixing up one of the inns, Zeke stared at the man with a scrutinizing gaze. Though his face was undeniably human, his arms and legs were covered in tawny hair that appeared to cover his whole body. The red hair on his head fell to his shoulders like a mane, and a tail sprouted from out of the back of his pants, waving around curiously.

When he left, Zeke asked Noèlle what species he was. "He is an Ondinian," she said plainly. "Ten men came to me and offered to help with restoring the city, and seeing that we have a lot of work ahead of us, I used some of my magic to enhance their bodies." She pointed at the man walking away and said, "His name is Loren. It was his idea to make them look animalistic. I changed him to be like a lion because he was the first to pledge his allegiance to me. I believe he was in the military for a time, or at least he acts like he does with his infallible loyalty. The others range from birds to beasts, and one even requested a lizard like body so he could climb easier. Although, that guy has a tendency to eat bugs which I think is disgusting." With a whimsical giggle, she gripped Zeke's arm a little tighter and offered to show him the library.

In her excitement, Noèlle nearly dragged Zeke through the streets, making him trip over pieces of rubble and debris. "Slow down, Noèlle," he begged as he slipped on some loose rubble and just barely caught himself in time to stay on his feet. "The ground is dangerous!"

"Quit whining," she said with a scowl. "You're acting just like your father did." When she said this, Zeke yanked on Noèlle's arm and pulled her backwards into him. "What are you doing, young prince?" she asked as she noticed he had an arm around her waist to keep her from going anywhere. "I know I'm beautiful and many men lust after me, but you should think about the girl that loves you."

With a cold stare, Zeke said, "There you go again, mentioning my father." He could only imagine how she knew about his father, but considering that she knew his mother, it was not all that unbelievable. "Who is my father?"

Above them, a bird shrieked and then Zeke felt himself being lifted from the ground. "My queen," someone said from behind the prince. "Are you okay?"

"Neisir, put him down," Noèlle commanded, pointing at the ground before her. "That's the prince of Hyrule you've got there."

The birdman groaned and said, "I thought he was attacking you." Slowly, he lowered Zeke down until his feet touched the ground. Touching down next to Zeke, he dropped to a knee and bowed to him. "I beg your pardon, your highness."

Unused to people bowing before him, Zeke quickly told Neisir to stand up. "I forgive you, Neisir. You were just trying to protect your queen." While Noèlle chastised the man, Zeke took the time to observe this man as well. Unlike the members of the Rito Tribe, Neisir's wings grew from his back and gave him his arms to use while in flight. His wings were dark like a raven's, a strange contrast to his pale skin, but one that seemed to work for him.

"He is our esteemed guest and you are to show him respect!" Noèlle shouted. Zeke could not believe how angry she was over the situation. Every word that fell from her mouth was like a whip lashing across Neisir's back, making him flinch and cringe in discomfort. "What do you have to say for yourself?!"

Neisir looked up with tears in his eyes, fighting back sobs in order to speak. "I'm sorry, my queen! I will exercise better judgment in the future!" For Noèlle, he got on his knees and touched his forehead to the ground in an attempt to bow as low as he could. "I will accept any punishment the prince wishes!"

Crouching down next to the man, Noèlle lifted his chin and smiled at him in a way that reflected that of a mother to a child. "Now stand up and wipe away those tears. You're a man now, Neisir. Not a child." She helped him to his feet and even took out a handkerchief to wipe away some of his tears. "Where should you be right now, Neisir?"

A look of fear swept over Neisir's face and he said that he was supposed to be helping Loren at the next project. Quickly, he ran off down the street to get some wind under his wings before jumping into the air and flying off.

"Can you believe he's only fourteen?" Noèlle asked, smiling after him. "He was abandoned by his parents who left him with a group of fishermen when he was ten. Their boat got swept up by a storm and all but Neisir died. Somehow he was brought to Ondine, and ever since then I have taken care of him as his surrogate mother." They continued walking towards the library, and Noèlle noticed the sword attached to Zeke's hand. "So what's up with the sword?"

Holding up the heavy blade, Zeke frowned and said, "Link doesn't think I'm good enough with a sword yet, so he's making me carry this thing around until he says I can untie the wrappings around my hand." He swung the blade and sighed. "It's too heavy for me."

"Your father was quite the swordsman," Noèlle said encouragingly. "You'll be able to kick Link's ass in no time." Zeke gave her an annoyed look, and there was no need for him to voice what he was thinking. Linking her arm with his again, she became grim and said, "Your father's dead, Zeke. He died shortly after you were conceived."

"How?"

Noèlle shrugged. "Who knows? Your mother might, but as you probably know, she doesn't like to talk about him. I wouldn't want to either. If a man said he loved me then died after getting me pregnant I would be pretty upset too." She regarded Zeke with a curious expression before saying, "You don't get along with your mom."

"You're not going to give me a lecture too, are you?" Zeke asked through clenched teeth. _All right, I get it. I'm not the best son in the world. _"I already promised myself I would somehow mend our relationship."

"Why would you want to? Your mother's insane." This response surprised Zeke so much that he had to look at the woman's face to make sure she was joking. Revealing a single fang on the right side of her mouth with her amused smile, Noèlle said, "I like your mom. She was the first person to laugh at one of my jokes after many centuries. I'm glad to see you are very much like her." When Zeke furrowed his brow as he tried to think of what made him like his mother, she saved him the trouble by saying, "You're strong willed, wise, and loving. Three traits your mother carried in excess. Plus she always seemed to have a question to ask, much like you. What is it you're dying to know about?"

"What, you don't already know?" he asked.

Noèlle laughed and shook her head, making her curls bounce. "You catch on fast. Yes, but I know you have many questions to ask so it would be better if I let you ask so that I'm not answering the wrong one. For example, no, Maiya's not pregnant." She saw Zeke blush and giggled. "Well prince? Ask away."

Shaking off his discomfort, Zeke asked, "Did you know Sri Tessla when you were in the Sacred Realm?"

"I should have known." Noèlle sighed and worry showed on her face as she regarded Zeke with a sorrowful expression. There was a silent plea in her eyes that were begging the prince to recall the question, but he made no effort to take back the question and this only made the woman even more concerned. "Why do you want to know about her? Is it the crystal force?"

Turning his back to her, Zeke ran his fingers through his hair and leaned on the sword like a cane. "When we were attacked at the castle," he said, the memory playing in his mind with unerring accuracy. "I fought a horde of bulbins and made it through unscathed, but when I came across their master I was powerless. I couldn't do anything that would give me the upper hand. I lost Maiya because of my weakness!" With a snarl, Zeke raised the sword above his head and struck it against a building, the force of the blow causing the wall to collapse.

Anger and hatred showed clearly in the green eyes, but it was controlled and overwhelmed by the sadness running cold through his veins like ice. Hastily, Zeke wiped at his eyes to dry them, noticing that tears had formed. "I was too weak to save someone I care about. I don't ever want to be put in this position again." He straightened his posture and gave Noèlle a fiercely determined stare. Their eyes locked and silence fell, even the breeze had stilled. "I want the crystal force so that no one will ever be able to humiliate me again. I will protect the ones I love, and I will crush anyone who dares attempt to take them away."

Though shocked by his display of rage, Noèlle donned an understanding expression and placed a hand on Zeke's shoulder. The gesture was ill accepted despite the intention behind it, the hand being pushed away. This frustrated the woman, but she was above becoming angry and forced the prince to focus on her eyes. "There are plenty of other ways of becoming stronger. You don't have to seek out that bitch for her power." When Zeke's eyes flickered with surprise by the usage of the term, Noèlle smirked and continued to speak. "As a Seras, I was constantly ridiculed by the Sri for my inferior magical abilities, but none were as awful as Tessla. She had a personal grudge against me, always being outdone by my natural beauty. While I always found favor with the Goddesses, she was reprimanded many times for her failures.

"How do you know that the crystal she possesses will grant you power? She is vengeful and full of malice. She could have spread the rumor of the crystal herself when in reality it is just a trick to bring young men and women to her so she can brutally torture them. If you take her the seven pieces of that crystal, she could take the power for herself and kill you out of gratitude. We have too many dark powers in this world already, we don't need any more."

"Enough!" Zeke shouted, his face red with anger. "I've made my decision! Will you help me or not?!"

"I won't."

Letting the fire in his heart burn like an inferno, Zeke launched himself at Noèlle and pushed her into a wall while holding the sword at her throat. The speed with which he attacked the woman was frightening, and as the queen of Ondine stared into his eyes she could see how ready he was to hurt her.

"Are you going to threaten me, prince?" she asked quietly, so as to calm him. "If I refuse again, will you kill me? My warriors will slay you before you can reach the gate, or if you're lucky enough to evade them you can be sure that your mother and Link will not let you get away with it. You will have to run away on your own."

Zeke wrapped the fingers of his free hand around her neck and lifted her up on the wall, watching as her hands came up to clutch at his wrist. While he was not squeezing hard enough to completely restrict her breathing, it was clear that her lungs were not getting the amount of oxygen they needed. As she gasped for air, he said, "I'm prepared to live a life on my own." To show how serious he was, he held up the sword and touched the tip to her abdomen. "If you won't help me, then I'll kill you!"

Before he could go through with his threat, Noèlle reached out with her hand and touched his forehead, saying, "Don't you dare try to intimidate me, you little bastard!" Her gaze became fierce, and then Zeke felt a wave of pain burst inside of his skull that felt like it was being split in half.

Then Zeke felt an arm around his waist and he was thrown backwards into a building somewhere behind him. As soon as Noèlle's fingers had left his head the pain had ceased, but it was short lived for he hit his head on something and became instantly dizzy. Unable to see past the stars in his vision, he could hear someone asking Noèlle if she was all right, and then he could feel a hand gripping the front of his tunic.

"What in Din's name do you think you're doing?" Enigma hissed, throwing Zeke out into the street at Link's feet where the prince suffered a quick kick in the gut from the knight.

Link was no happier by his actions than Enigma, and he had no qualms about teaching him the error of his ways. "Perhaps what I should do is cut off your hands so that you can't wield a sword ever." Picking Zeke up by the front of his shirt, he roughly shoved him against a wall and turned his dull, but frightening, eyes on the prince. "I don't care if Noèlle insulted you, cursed you, or attempted to hurt you. You _never_ turn your blade on a queen!"

Crouching down next to Noèlle as she coughed for air, Enigma helped her stand and even offered an arm to aid her. "Here you go, Noèlle."

However, she did not want his help. Balling her hand into a fist, she punched the cloaked man in the gut and rushed over to push Link aside. With a powerful kick that betrayed her appearance, Noèlle knocked Link down and turned her attention to Zeke. Her golden eyes shimmered with what could only be rage, and a trickle of blood ran down to her chin from her lip where her fang had bit through. With a voice that hardly reflected what she had sounded like before, she said, "I'm the one who's going to punish you, child!"

First she slapped him across the face, but then she touched her middle fingers to his temples and glared deep into his eyes before he could recover from the initial strike. Slowly, his mind became dark, and then he was lost.


	26. Chapter 26: Torment

Chapter 26: Torment

"_Your first mistake was asking me about the crystal. Your second was attacking me. But above all, the one thing that condemned you was the fact that you dared to threaten me and attempted to go through with it. I have been nothing but hospitable to you and you have abused the trust that I so willingly gave. For your punishment, I sentence you to suffer through your worst fears, prince!_"

"That's Noèlle's voice," Zeke murmured as he looked around the place he now found himself in. "But where is she?"

There was no sign of the queen of Ondine, nor of Ondine itself. Wherever Zeke was, it was far away from where he had been just moments before. Instead of archaic buildings and rubble, there were petrified trees and skeletons of fallen animals and humans. "Where the hell am I?"

"That's exactly where you are." Turning around, Zeke saw Maiya sitting on a log in a short-skirted dress. When he regarded her with a confused expression, she said, "You're in Hell." Maiya was shocked when, despite sharing what should have been horrid news, Zeke wrapped his arms around her and cried out happily.

"I'm so glad you're okay," he said as he held her to him tightly, afraid to let go.

But Maiya had nothing good to say to Zeke. "Sorry, but I'm not really here," she said sadly, and then she was gone.

Zeke looked around frantically for her, but she had disappeared without a trace. He realized that she must have been an illusion of some sort, and in order to keep his spirits from sinking into a pit of despair, he said, "I just can't keep her around, can I?" He scratched his head and looked around, trying to figure out where he was.

Never in his life had he been in such a desolate place, so that ruled out the chance that he had been there before. However, it was familiar to him and he had no clue as to why. For his entire life he had been around nothing but living things, never death.

There had to be more to this world though, so Zeke started walking down a path that was made up of fine powder from what he assumed must have been years of having feet walked upon it. As he stepped onto the path, though, he felt his own foot sink into the grey dust up to his ankle. With some effort he was able to free his foot, but this presented a problem for him. While traveling along the path was without a doubt the safer way to go in regards of finding his way, if his feet sank with every step he would be left vulnerable to anyone or anything that could be around. Although it made him uneasy, Zeke knew he had no choice but to go through the trees.

_If I stay within sight of the path I should be okay_, he told himself as he veered away from the path and into the dead forest around it.

* * *

"Noèlle, no!" Link rushed forward to pull the woman away from Zeke, but an invisible barrier prevented him from even touching her. "Damn it! Noèlle! Leave him alone! He's just a child!" Pounding on the barrier that Noèlle had placed around her and her prey, Link continued to yell and plead with her in hopes that reason would reach her ears.

Standing a few feet behind the knight, Enigma just stood and stared at the happenings before him. "Link, what is she doing?" he asked, unsure if he should be scared or not. While the sight before him was somewhat disturbing, he had no real reason to be frightened.

Link picked up a piece of rubble and started to beat on the barrier with all of his might, sending ripples out over the surface. "Noèlle is inside of Zeke's head! If she gets carried away he could die!"

* * *

It felt like an eternity had passed since he had entered this dead land. Everything looked the same to Zeke, which made it hard to tell if he was even making progress. He had lost sight of the path for a split second a few hours before and had not been able to find it again, so he was walking around aimlessly and hoping that he would come across someone who could help him.

"_You're not afraid_," Noèlle's voice echoed around him, resonating within the trees. "_Perhaps you just need things to heat up a bit_." Behind Zeke, a tree burst into flames, spreading the fire to the other trees.

Zeke stared wide-eyed at the flickering red, but quickly turned and started to run. In an area like the one he found himself in, fire would spread quickly. Burning to death was far from a pleasant thought to the prince, so he ran as hard as he could, making sure he would not trip on anything.

Harder and harder he ran, aware that the fire was right on his heels. He could smell the burning wood, and he could hear the snarl of the flames consuming everything in their path. It took every bit of his self-control to keep his eyes forward, for if he turned to look he knew he would be overtaken.

But then the light coming from behind him disappeared, and when he turned to look there was no fire chasing after him. "That's weird." As he slowed his pace, he caught his foot on a root and fell to the ground, falling through into water.

Shocked by the unexpected outcome, Zeke gasped, somehow getting air. In spite of getting enough air to evaluate the situation, something wrapped around his ankle and started pulling him down away from the surface. Thinking it was some sort of weed like the sort that would wash up on the beach occasionally, the prince quickly pulled himself down to remove it so he could escape.

He leaned in close, squinting against the darkness. Staring right back at him was the eternal smile of one who had been long dead, the dark abysses where eyes had once been piercing through Zeke's resolve. Releasing all of the air stored in his lungs, Zeke screamed against the liquid restraint and started thrashing in order to be rid of the skeleton.

"Are you alright?" someone asked as Zeke was being pulled out of the infinitely deep pond.

Zeke coughed up some water before turning his attention on the man who had rescued him from a hideous death. The man had medium length red-brown hair that was parted down the middle in a lethargic way that hinted at a lack of care. Framing his green-brown eyes were a pair of rectangular glasses that kept sliding down his nose no matter how many times he pushed them back to rest on the bridge.

"Are you okay?" the man repeated, giving the prince a rough pat on the back to help aid in the expulsion of water from his lungs.

Unable to let this man simply be a savior, Zeke held up his sword and asked, "Who are you?" In this place, while another being was appreciated, it was quite suspicious, and he would not let himself be drawn into a trap.

The man looked at the sword for a moment, appearing to be thinking about something. Then he returned his eyes to the prince and said, "My name is Raschel. I'm a demon hunter." Zeke lowered his sword when the man mentioned his job, not sure if he was being serious or not. Raschel smiled when he saw this and held out his arms to show he had nothing to hide. "Care to join me?" He stood up and walked over to a large metal carriage of sorts that had the prince rather puzzled.

"What do you mean when you say demon?" Zeke asked, an image from a nightmare appearing in his mind.

Reaching into the large metal beast, Raschel said, "I mean beings that feed off of the souls of humans. Playing with their fear and killing them without a second thought." Raschel pulled a strange metal object out of the beast and held it up to examine.

_I wonder if it's…_, Zeke started to wonder, but the man was already heading towards a path and the prince wanted the man's company, even if it meant going to the lair of a demon. "So what do you know about this demon?"

"It's a nasty one, that's for sure," Raschel responded. "It's dwelling in a church down this path. I don't know what it looks like, but that hardly matters. All demons need to be exorcized, even if they look like innocent little girls. I'll send them all back to Hell." Pointing his strange metal object into the woods ahead of them, he made a noise with his mouth and smirked. "Demons do not deserve mercy."

The tenacity with which Raschel spoke was chilling, and it made Zeke wonder if he should turn back and continue searching for a way out of the dead woods. But before he could leave, a large stone building appeared before them and he became too enthralled by its presence to even consider leaving. "What did you say this was?" he asked, recognizing the architecture as somewhat similar to that of the buildings in Ondine.

"It's a church," Raschel said, stopping to let the prince stare. "This one is nothing compared to the Sistine Chapel. Come on, we have demons to slay."

They both entered the church, stepping over the broken doors and rubble. For whatever reason, Zeke felt uncomfortable talking to this stranger, so he kept quiet. In all honesty, he was having trouble admitting to himself that this was all happening. _I had been with Noèlle, but now I'm here. It just doesn't make sense_. The more he puzzled over it, the less sense it made. There was no possible way she had sent him away without physically moving him.

Raschel stopped by a basin at the front of what he said was the sanctuary and started filling vials with the stone bowl's water. "What are you doing?" Zeke asked, noticing that the water seemed to shimmer with light. "What is that in the basin?"

"Holy water," Raschel said, his voice a mere murmur. "Demons cannot touch that which is holy."

While the man continued to fill the vials, Zeke went over to inspect a room that had caught his attention. It appeared to be a study, similar to the room the archivists would use when copying scrolls. Though he could see nothing wrong with it, Zeke could feel evil resonating from the room. But, as if he had no control over his body, he walked across the room and stopped in the middle.

Gripped with fear, he could only look around, taking slow breaths that were far between. The darkness was much more powerful in this new location, and Zeke did not have to look to know there was something behind him. With a speed that only came from fear and desperation, Zeke spun and swung his sword. The blade came into contact with something incredibly hard, numbing his hand from the impact.

Floating before him was a robed creature that wore a white porcelain mask with red markings all over it. It stared down at him with the empty eyes of the mask, filling Zeke with a full range of paralyzing emotions. The spirit raised a hand and struck Zeke, sending him flying out into the sanctuary. Zeke struck a wooden pew that shattered from the force of the collision and sent waves of pain shooting up his spine.

For a few moments, Zeke lost all of his senses, plunging him deeper into his fear. Despite the pain he was in from being thrown, he was still paralyzed and could make no attempt to move himself. The image of the demon burned against his mind, forcing its profane presence upon him.

"Are you alright, kid?" Raschel asked as he knelt down next to Zeke and tried helping him to his feet.

Zeke's vision cleared, but he began to wish that he had remained blind. He let out a pathetic yell and almost ran for the door, but he knew he could not do that. While every part of his body was yelling at him to move, his conscience would not let him leave Raschel alone to contend with this spirit. _There's got to be something I can do_, he told himself, looking down at the sword in his hand.

There was a yell of pain, distracting Zeke from his thoughts. Raschel had thrown a vial of holy water at the spirit, but it had no visible affect. Turning to Zeke, he shouted, "Run, kid!"

Zeke would later remember thinking that there was no such thing as gallantry in the face of fear. Since he would not receive any help in fighting this demon, he decided that running was his best option. Surprisingly, the creature did not follow him. It was more interested in following Raschel down the path, letting Zeke take his own course through the woods unhindered.

As he slowed down to catch his breath, Zeke wondered just what was going on. The woods themselves seemed to be alive in spite of the fact that the trees all looked dead. "She said this place was Hell…"

"And she was very right, Prince Zeke of Hyrule."

Zeke froze as a chill ran down his spine. At first he thought this was a result of fear, but then he noticed that the area he was standing in was slowly being coated with ice. Exhaling a puff of air that swirled in front of his face, Zeke delved into a warm part of his brain that reminded him of the tales he heard as a child filled with valor and bravery. "Is that you, Kai?"

A laugh as cold as the air echoed all around him, but he knew the owner was directly behind him. "I didn't think you'd remember me after all this time."

Zeke heard the sound of rustling fabric and the dull screech of a blade being drawn. Clenching his teeth, he fell forwards while spinning to face his opponent, catching his breath as he saw a blade pass within in inch of his nose. At a disadvantage in the fight, Zeke was surprised to see that Kai was making no effort to strike again.

"I see you've grown since the last time," Kai said as he sheathed his black blade. He took a seat and brushed his bangs behind his ears, having come loose during his attack. "So tell me, prince. Why are you here?"

Zeke raised himself to a sitting position, assuming the attacks were over for the time being. "I don't know. I don't even know where this place is. One minute I'm standing in Ondine, the next I'm here in this dead-land."

Kai picked up a pinecone and threw it at Zeke, getting him in the forehead. "Don't call my home a dead-land. This is a wondrous place full of fun and happiness." When Zeke gave him a skeptical look, Kai smirked and said, "For me, at least. I get to torture people in any way I please every day. It's quite enjoyable." Drawing his belt knife, he laughed at Zeke's cold stare. "What? I just ate and I've got some meat stuck in my teeth." Sure enough, he opened his mouth and proceeded to pick in between his fang and the tooth behind it.

"What kind of knife is that?" Zeke asked, trying to keep the conversation going. Kai was a demon, but he was the only familiar person in the world at the moment. If having a friendly conversation with someone meant sitting to tea with a bloodthirsty beast, then Zeke was willing to give it a shot.

After succeeding in picking the offending meat from his teeth, Kai returned it to its sheath and replied, "It's called a Kozuka." Silence fell between them, but a wicked sneer quirked at Kai's lips and he revealed his fangs sadistically. "I can't believe you actually threatened to kill Noèlle, the psychopath of the Sacred Realm. You're either very brave or incredibly stupid."

Zeke found this less amusing than Kai. "She wouldn't tell me what I needed to hear, so I thought I'd give her a little insentive. I didn't intend to kill her." Giving Kai a suspicious glance, he said, "How did you know I did that, anyway?"

"How indeed."

Before Zeke could sense that there was something wrong, a tree grew out of the ground behind him, tying its roots around his wrists and ankles. "What is this?!" he cried as he pulled against the restraints. _Is this…a cross?_

The demon drew his blade and laughed sadistically, looking up at Zeke from below. "Noèlle sent you here to torture you. As much as I hate that bitch, I feel obligated to go through with her wish," Kai explained as he tested the edge of his sword with his thumb, satisfied when his skin parted and black blood started to drip from the cut. Baring his teeth, Kai grinned before saying, "I won't kill you, for that would displease Noèlle, but I'm going to put you through so much Hell that you'll be a broken man when I'm done with you."

"What are you going to do?" Zeke asked fearfully as Kai walked around behind him, leaving the prince's line of vision. "What did I ever do to you, anyway?"

"You got me pregnant, that's what."

Time froze. All was silent except for the sound of Zeke's heart, beating against his ribcage anxiously. "What…did you say?" he asked, positive he had heard wrong. However, he knew he was wrong. Before he heard the voice again, a slight breeze carried the scent of pomegranates to his nose. The statement was repeated, and Zeke had to look away and close his eyes.

"What's the matter, Zeke? Have I done something to displease you?"

Clenching his teeth, Zeke opened his eyes and looked down at the girl with crimson eyes and shouted, "You're not Maiya!"

"How perceptive," Kai's voice said from Maiya's mouth. "However, while you are quite correct in knowing that I am merely in the form of that girl, it still has the desired affect." With a quick upward slash, Kai opened up Zeke's chest and sent a spray of blood into the air.

_This can't be happening_, Zeke thought as he screamed in pain and pulled against his restraints.

Kai narrowed his borrowed crimson eyes and growled angrily, pointing his sword at Zeke. "You get run through with a sword without shedding a tear, yet this makes you scream like a laboring woman? You've become weak!" Grasping his black blade in both hands, Kai made another diagonal cut across Zeke's chest. This time, Zeke did not scream.

Instead, Zeke met Kai's gaze with a pained expression and said, "That was so painful I couldn't scream or cry. Further more, I wanted to help Maiya." A grin that reflected the one Kai had worn split Zeke's lips as he laughed feebly. There was a wild look in his eyes that seemed to shock the demon. "The pain…of not being able to do anything for someone you care about is unlike anything else in the world. You can't hurt me."

"Is that so?" Returning to Maiya's voice, Kai leaned in close to Zeke and whispered, "I'm far from done, _Love_."

* * *

"What's going on?" Kenji asked as he skidded to a halt by Enigma. He had heard Link's shouting from afar, and came to investigate. From what he could see, Noèlle was massaging Zeke's temples with a grimace on her face while Link was banging on nothing with a piece of rubble. "I heard screaming, and I came as fast as I could."

The cloaked man sighed and shook his head. "I don't understand what's going on, so I have no answer for you," he said as he crossed his arms. "Link said something about Noèlle being inside Zeke's head. I'm guessing that means she's in his consciousness. She can do whatever she wants in there, and that's dangerous."

Judging by the look on Kenji's face, it was apparent the youth understood little of what had been said. Instead of replying, he just stood gazing at Noèlle and Zeke as if he was going to jump in and do something. _If only we could do something_, Enigma thought as he saw Link finally give up in breaking the barrier around the two. "Link, what are the odds that she's just going to give Zeke a little scare and send him on his way?"

From the way Link dropped to his knees, it was far from necessary for him to speak. "It's hopeless," he said gruffly. "Noèlle is in a rage. Even if Zeke survives, he's going to be dead inside." He mumbled something about explaining this to Zeke's mother before drawing the Master Sword and striking the barrier.

* * *

"So, prince. How do you feel?" Kai asked as he examined a strange object with a hook at the end of it. He turned around and grinned at the sight before him. Tied to the cross, Zeke had been rendered defenseless before the demon.

Too weary to even lift his head, Zeke was forced to look at the damage that had been inflicted upon him. Even though he told himself it looked worse than it felt, it was still too much for him to bear. In an effort to shut it out, he closed his eyes, but that only made things worse. Throughout his torture, Kai had taken on the appearance of many people whom Zeke either cared deeply for or trusted completely. Currently, Kai was holding the appearance of Sakura. If that was not enough, the demon smiled the whole time he looked at Zeke.

Taking deep breathes, Zeke said, "If I say I'm fine, you'll just cut me up some more. If I say I feel like Hell, then you'll just feel proud of yourself and still cut me up." Zeke thought it was strange how so much could happen to him without it resulting in his death. "You're a sadistic demon, Kai."

A blade flashed in front of Zeke's face and came to rest by his neck. Kai had returned to his fierce form, but his smile was gone. "Don't _ever_ call me a demon. I may have black hair, pale skin, and dark eyes, but I'm not any different than Noèlle!"

"I beg to differ."

Kai and Zeke both turned their heads to see the queen of Ondine leaning against a tree with her arms crossed. In the flash of an instant, Noèlle closed the distance between herself and Kai, taking hold of his shirt and holding him against a tree. "You have no idea how long I've waited to see your face, Kai," she said venomously.

"Ah, Noèlle," Kai cooed, reaching a hand up and stroking the woman's face. "I've longed to see you, too, my love. How've you been?" A hand came across his face viciously, but he continued to stare at Noèlle with a grin. "Why have you come? Are you not satisfied with this boy's punishment?"

Noèlle's whole being was that of rage, from the way her body trembled to just how the air around her seemed to throb as if it were in pain. "I wondered why Maiya showed up when Zeke first got here, but I thought it might just be an illusion created out of desperation. However, that demon in the church…it was all your doing, wasn't it, Kai?"

Before Kai could answer, Noèlle drew a clear blade from out of the air and thrust it through him, pinning him to the tree. Looking down at the hilt of the sword, Kai feigned sorrow, saying, "But my love, how could you betray me like this? I've done nothing but thought of you!"

"Shut your foul mouth, Kai!" The queen of Ondine turned to Zeke, gave him a sigh of pity, and said, "Sleep, prince."


	27. Chapter 27: Not Strong Enough?

Chapter 27: Not…Strong Enough?

Zeke's eyes opened with a start and he sighed deeply. It was dark wherever he was, but he was comfortable. The soft orange light from a fire danced on the walls around him and had a calming affect on his mind. "Was it…all just a dream?" he asked himself. Everything that had happened was far beyond normal, but it all seemed much too real to have been a mere dream. Though he tried to piece things together, Zeke was too exhausted to think and failed to come to a conclusion.

"Zeke…"

The soft voice barely reached his ears, but it sent warmth throughout his body in an instant. Sitting up, Zeke found Sakura curled up on the bed he was in, taking up only a small portion so as not to disturb his rest. She was still asleep, mumbling out of worry for her friend. To ease her rest, the prince gently caressed her head, a habit he had developed with his little sister on stormy nights before she had overcome her fear of thunder.

In order to help the girl sleep better, Zeke took one of the quilts folded up at the bottom of the bed and tucked it in around her. Then he carefully lifted her head so he could give her a pillow to use. After making sure she was comfortable with the change, he went over to the fireplace and placed another piece of wood within the flames to prolong the fire's life. Despite the fire, it was rather chilly in the room.

There was a soft whine as old hinges protested against being used, and Zeke turned to see Noèlle standing in the doorway. She had done away with her elegant dress and was wearing a modest nightgown colored a deep emerald green, making her look less extravagant and more human. Zeke thought she looked like a beautiful painting from the way she was leaning against the doorframe and gazing over at Sakura. "You're quite a nurturing person when you're not pursuing selfish ambitions," she said quietly so that no one would be disturbed. "How is it that the prince who threatened my life could be so gentle with a young fairy girl?"

Silence fell between them. Noèlle appeared to be in a trance of sorts, while Zeke was too busy trying to find a way to apologize to the woman for attempting to kill her. The event was still a touchy subject for the prince, so instead he decided to change the subject since he felt the silence was ill accepted. "Where is everyone?" he asked. "Sir Link said that I would share a room with Kenji, but there is only one bed in here, and no sign of Kenji."

Noèlle left her place by the door and gracefully moved over to a comfortable looking chair, seating herself and hugging her knees like a little girl. "This is your mother's room," she said, gesturing at the shelves that Zeke had overlooked. "She used to come here often in the past. Never for very long, since she was usually taken back to the castle after a day or two. But she still treated this place like her own private get away. All of her favorite novels are here, along with a few personal objects that she hid here thinking her advisors would make her get rid of them because they were childish."

One such item was sitting on the nightstand next to the chair Noèlle was seated in. "That's my bear, Kisuke," Zeke mumbled, moving to pick it up. "But…how?" The bear was seated with Zeke's circlet upon its head, and the pictograph was still positioned so that it looked like the bear was holding it.

"Your mother was here not a week ago. She had a lot to talk about, and I don't really blame her." Taking the pictograph from the bear's lap, Noèlle smiled and said, "This is a cute picture."

Even though he did not feel particularly embarrassed by the comment, Zeke felt his face get a little warmer. Just in case she might notice, he turned his face away and scratched the back of his ear. "I'm sorry about earlier. I let myself get carried away, and what I did was unforgivable."

At this, Noèlle laughed. "No one is beyond forgiveness, Zeke," she said as she reached forward and gave his head a soft pat. "Climb back into bed and give your little friend some company. She's been worried sick about you these last few days." After Zeke gave her a questioning stare, she told him that he had been unconscious for three days straight after the incident. "I'll explain everything to you in the morning, but for now, please rest. You still don't look all that great, and you'll benefit from sleep that isn't induced by unconsciousness."

Zeke looked over at the bed hesitantly. After being told he had been bed ridden for three days, he had little want to return. In order to delay, he asked, "What about you?"

A shocked expression appeared on the woman's face, but it was quickly replaced by a sly smirk that hinted at a dirty thought. "I don't know, Zeke. Would your mother really approve of you _negotiating _with the queen of Ondine? While I could show you a good time, I think it would be best if you saved yourself for Maiya."

His face aflame, Zeke quickly backed away from Noèlle and held his hands up to shield himself. "That's not what I meant! Stay away from me!"

Noèlle made a show of pretending to be hurt as she left the room, but before she closed the door, she said in a very serious tone, "Know this. What happened in that other world, though not entirely real, was very damaging to your body. If Kai had gone on…be thankful you're alive."

*

When Zeke awoke for the second time that morning, he was surprised to find he had company awaiting him. In the far corner, Kenji was standing alone. He appeared to be trying to disappear by some unknown means that were, as of yet, unsuccessful. Noèlle was helping Sakura with a tray of food that was much too heavy for the girl to handle by herself. And most surprisingly, the occupant of the chair next to the bed was Link.

The knight had his attention diverted at the moment, as he was watching the two girls with an uninterested gaze. Just the look on his face was enough to say he expected something bad to happen. There was a hint of disappointment in his eyes when the two girls managed to get the tray set on a table without incident. By this point, Link noticed that Zeke was awake and turned his attention onto the boy.

"So you're alive after all," he said with a tone as stiff as his posture. "How have your _dreams_ been?"

Sitting up, Zeke hid his eyes behind his bangs and refused to look at the man. "Good morning, sir," he mumbled. Even with his eyes averted, he could feel Link's intense stare drilling into the side of is head.

"Link, you'd better leave before I make you experience your worst fears, too," Noèlle threatened.

Link stood up, but said, "You've already tried and failed once before. What makes you think you can do it this time?"

The woman smiled dangerously and crossed her arms. "I don't know. Maybe now I've got some personal leverage on you that I didn't have before." There was a clear threat behind her words, and apparently it was one that Link was not going to challenge. After giving Zeke a firm pat on the head, he walked out of the room and disappeared. "Honestly, I don't know what to do with you guys," she said as she took the seat Link had left vacant. "Link can be so rude, but that's only because he was worried about you."

Zeke looked into the woman's golden eyes and asked, "Why would he be worried about me?"

"Because we were _all_ worried about you!" Sakura blurted. She quickly covered her mouth in an attempt to take back some of the force behind her words, but the message had already sunk in.

Looking across the room, Zeke caught Kenji's attention. "Even you, Harper?" Kenji only nodded and averted his gaze. With his mind so troubled, he would not risk speaking.

Zeke felt a soft hand brush against his cheek and recoiled, staring at Noèlle's hand cautiously. "What's the matter, prince? Afraid of a little motherly touch?" she asked. Though she sounded concerned, a smirk played at the corner of her lips. Daring to push the prince around, she sat on the bed next to him and started to gently rub his back. "Relax, Zeke. I doubt you'll get another chance in the future."

With a sigh, he relented and let himself enjoy the back rub. After being asleep for an extended period of time, his muscles ached and the hand on his back was helping to ease the tension he felt. However, there was a knot that would not be alleviated. "You said you'd explain everything to me," he said flatly. "Tell me what happened."

"Eat and I'll tell you," she said, annoyed that he was still giving orders. She waited until he started to do as he was told before saying anything. "The other day, I entered your mind. It's an ability I have that can be used for multiple things such as torture and searching for lost memories. My only objective was to scare you, prince. You are deeply afraid of burning to death, as well as drowning. The path you got your foot in was to show you that you were in a place full of despair. However, there was something very wrong.

"It all started with the appearance of Maiya, and then that man who pulled you out of the water. Even though I was in complete control of your mind, that man had nothing to do with me. Instead of freeing you from my hold like I should have, I waited and watched to see what would happen if I let things play out. I regret that."

Zeke paused in his eating to ask, "You didn't anticipate the appearance of a demon like Kai, did you?" He felt Noèlle's hand ball into a fist and press against his back firmly at the sound of the name.

"Kai is no demon, but what he is makes him worse," she answered through clenched teeth. "Whether you believe me or not, I was once an inhabitant of Heaven. I was one of the noble Seras, an angel of the highest order. We acted as advisors for the goddesses, along with upholding peace in the newly formed world. Kai was a Seraph, the male term for what I am. He was a handsome and fair Seraph, often times coming down to Hyrule so he could play with the children."

"Doesn't sound like the Kai I know," Zeke murmured.

Noèlle shook her head and bit her lip. "No one saw it coming. He was such a prime example of what we were that we thought he was incapable of treachery." There was a pause in her explanation that left the room silent for a long time. No one said anything or inquired for more information out of fear that Noèlle might become angry and enter their mind. After Sakura caught herself yawning, the woman finally began speaking again. "Long story short, Kai ran from Heaven and disappeared. Why he appeared in your mind, Zeke, I don't know. But I would be very careful from now on. If he has taken an interest in you, then your life is in danger."

Sakura, who had not said anything since her small outburst, opened her mouth a few times to speak. But her words fell short. After fidgeting with her skirt for a moment, she asked, "How can we protect Zeke from Kai?"

"I hate to say it, but the reason Kai, or me for that matter, was able to enter Zeke's mind is because our prince is too weak."

Zeke started to choke on his food after he heard the statement. "Too weak?" he said hoarsely.

"That's right," Link said sternly as he reentered the room with Grogh. "Your mind and body are both too weak. If you wish to continue whatever quest you're on, you have to become stronger. Stronger than me, and stronger than that." He went to stand against a wall while Grogh briefly checked Zeke's reflexes and response time. "As soon as you're better, you and I are going out into the city to train."

Noèlle stood to her feet and was next to Link with the same speed she had used on Zeke and looked the knight directly in the eye. "Is that all you think about? Getting stronger? The prince is in a condition you'll never understand, and yet you wish to drag him out into demon-infested places to physically maim him? As a friend of the queen's, I won't allow you to do this to her son!"

Before Link could argue the point further, Zeke said, "Enough. Link is right." Pushing Grogh's hands away, he climbed out of the bed and stretched out his legs and back. "All of this is because I wasn't prepared to deal with the enemies I knew I'd face. I'm ready now, let's go Link." Taking the sword Link had given to him, he stepped into his boots and strode out of the room.

The only person who had moved was Kenji. When he had seen that Zeke was planning on leaving, he decided it was time for him to do so as well. "Noèlle's actually right about Link," he said quietly. "He's known for saying things like that."

Zeke regarded the Harper with a soft expression. As they walked down the hall together, the prince could not help but feel a sense of kinship with Kenji. "I woke up last night and found Sakura with me," he said, catching Kenji's gaze. "Were you ever sitting and watching me to see if I was going to wake?"

Looking away, Kenji simply nodded. "Since we've been here, Sakura has done nothing but helped around the house. Link and Grogh have done what they could to help the Ondinians with the reconstruction of the city. I've pretty much been left on my own. Sakura insisted someone always be with you in case you woke up or something, so when she was absent, I was there."

They both stopped walking, and kept their gazes away from each other. Zeke was the first to speak, saying, "We're weak, Kenji." Kenji grunted in response, unwilling to admit it vocally. "I can best you in combat, yet I'm nothing in comparison to Link or Raikkus or anyone."

Kenji looked at the prince, seeing the anger beneath the calm exterior. It was clear to him that Zeke was being forced to acknowledge something that he was loathe to admit. Closing his eyes, the Harper said, "We are all weak. No matter how strong we get, there will always be someone better. You are strong, Zeke. Stronger than you have any right to be. Your swordsmanship, no matter how unrefined, is deadly and far beyond the level of a novice." Opening his eyes, he viciously grabbed the front of Zeke's shirt and pushed him against the wall.

"I was trained by knights. My parents were both Knights of the Crimson Tears. When I saw you fighting at the castle, I was filled with fear. You fight like a demon. When I sparred with you, I was using every ounce of my energy to best you, but always came up short because I just couldn't match your natural talent." As Zeke stared into Kenji's dark blue eyes, he could see the frustration that he felt also within his companion.

Clenching his teeth, tears began to form in Kenji's eyes. "I am afraid of you, but more than that, I'm afraid of the rest of the world. There are so many people who could destroy you without breaking a sweat, yet I struggle to even surprise you."

Zeke took a hold of the hand that was pushing him against the wall, and asked, "What is your motivation?"

This made Kenji flinch. Slowly, he let go of Zeke's shirt and pulled his hand back. "I have none." He turned away from Zeke and leaned against the opposite wall. "I have no motivation. I was so afraid of your strength that I thought no one could be better than you. I had no hope of getting better than you." Before Zeke could respond, Kenji said, "I think I'm going to return home."

Placing his hand on Kenji's shoulder, Zeke said, "I want to become stronger so I can protect the people I care about. I want to protect my sister. I want to protect Sakura. I want to protect Maiya." He turned to continue down the hall, but stayed put. "I can't do this on my own, Kenji. I need your help to unravel the mysteries that have been thrust upon me. Become stronger alongside me, and together we will take down anyone who dares stand against us. Please…don't leave Sakura and me."

Without waiting for a reply, Zeke continued down the hall and descended the stairs. He could not make Kenji travel with him if he did not want to, but he did not want to be alone in his quest. _Please, don't leave me alone…_

_I will not leave you alone_, Sakura's voice said in his mind.

"_Thank you, Sakura_."

*

Link leaned against the wall of the room with his arms crossed, his expression blank. They had all heard Zeke and Kenji, but none knew how to proceed. Noèlle looked like she wanted to go speak to them, but was unsure. Grogh muttering something to himself that no one could hear, and he too looked as if he wanted to leave. Turning to Sakura, Link said, "Tell him to draw his sword and prepare himself."

Sakura just stared at the knight with wide eyes. "Why?" she asked. Fear fluttered across her face when Link started walking towards the hall while drawing his sword. "What are you going to do to him?!"

"Link," Noèlle said as she rose to stop him. "I don't know what you're planning, but he is still weak from Kai's interference. I don't know what you're planning, but I won't let you attack him." She tried to give him a stern and authoritative glare, but it did nothing to change his mind. Instead, she recoiled. The look in the man's eyes was wild, feral. "Link?"

"Grogh, find Enigma and tell him to go get a medical kit from Lady Aurora," Link said, his voice unsteady. "We're going to need one." Pushing passed Noèlle, Link briskly headed for the door.

Running to a window, Noèlle forced it open and looked around outside, spotting the prince immediately. "Zeke! Run!"

"Why?" Zeke asked as he stared up at the woman.

"Link's coming after you!" As the words fell from her lips, the front door of her home was thrown open, and Link stood in the doorway with the Master Sword in hand, staring directly at the prince. The knight's usually empty eyes were filled with passion, his mouth curved in a twisted smirk. Without warning, he burst forward and twirled his sword.

Terror filled Zeke's heart as he saw Link coming at him. Gripping his sword's hilt, he pulled it out of its sheath and threw the casing aside. He held the hilt with both hands tightly, raising his sword just in time to block the vertical slash that came down at him.

"Show it to me," Link breathed excitedly. "Show me your resolve!" Breaking away from Zeke, he shot forward again and swung his sword at the prince's legs. His attack was blocked again, but the prince was still afraid. This angered Link greatly. "Why are you showing that face?!" he shouted, kicking Zeke down. "Do you want to protect people? Then throw away your fear and fight me!"

Zeke's body was shaking. Just like when he had faced the demon in the church, he was paralyzed. All he could do was stare at Link, no matter how many times he told his body to move. He pleaded with his legs, but they were like jelly. Even if he could stand up, he would not be able to stay standing.

"Zeke, wake up!" Kenji shouted, dashing forward. Drawing his two blades, the Harper jumped up and spun in the air, using his momentum to send two strong attacks at Link from behind. The attack was easily deflected, but Kenji kicked out at Link while he was still in the air, catching the knight in the chest and knocking him down. "Zeke, run!" Kenji shouted, quickly jumping to his feet and standing between the prince and the knight. "I'll handle things here, just go!"

Snapping out of his paralysis, Zeke scrambled to his feet and started running. He ran harder than ever before, his muscles being moved by his feelings of panic. Behind him the sounds of steel on steel could be heard, but he could not bring himself to turn around. All he could do was run. Everything around him was telling him to run, even his instincts were telling him to keeping moving.

"You coward!!" Link shouted at Zeke.

_A coward I may be, but I like to be alive_, Zeke thought, the humor in the statement lost. As tears streamed down his face, he admitted to himself that he was just a coward. It was getting harder to breathe as choked sobs started to fill his throat. The only sounds in his ears were Link's enraged screams, reverberating in his head. No matter how far he ran, he could still hear the knight. He knew not if Kenji was still fighting him or if he had lost and was lying in a pool of blood.

"Maiya, help me!" Zeke sobbed. In mid step, his foot caught on something and fell to the ground with a sickening thud. Upon impact with the ground, he lost his grip on his sword and it slid away from him. He could not muster the strength to stand up.

"_You okay, Zeke?"_ Maiya's voice echoed in his ears. It was from a memory of one of their spars during their trip. It was the spar they had before she had been injured. After she had disarmed him, she had kicked him in the chest and sent him to his back. He hit the ground so hard that it knocked the wind out of his lungs. Unable to breathe, he could only just lay on his back in hopes that he would be able to breathe again.

Maiya, concerned, helped him sit up and rubbed his back. It was then that the question had first been asked. _"Zeke, if you were faced with an enemy, what would be your reason for fighting?"_

_I told her I would fight because he was an enemy. She smacked me in the head._

He remembered her words very clearly. _"When you fight, you should have a better reason than that. No matter how skilled your opponent is, if you have a stronger will than they do, you will rise victorious."_

It sounded ridiculous. Zeke knew that if he fought against someone who was better than him, he would die. Somehow, he knew Maiya would scold him for thinking that. _I told Kenji I want to be stronger so I can protect people…_

The sound of metal grinding on stone reached his ears, and it was getting louder. Slow footsteps accompanied the sound, as well as heavy breathing. "Is this your resolve?" Link fumed.

Zeke turned and looked at the knight. There was not a single scratch on him, but his eyes were filled with rage. Quickly, Zeke crawled to his sword and struggled to his feet. "What did you do to Kenji?" he asked, fearfully.

Link ignored the question and said, "I heard from Enigma that you had fought skillfully in the castle. Yet here you are, running away because you're scared like a child." He swung his sword at Zeke. Though the blow was blocked, the strength behind it was enough to make Zeke take a step back. "You said you wanted to protect people!" Link shouted, striking at Zeke again. "At this rate, they're all going to die! Your sister!" Another strike. "That fairy girl!" Another block. "That silly girl who taught you how to wield a sword! They're all going to die because you lack the will to raise your sword!"

Zeke blocked the offending sword one more time, but Link did not draw back. The knight pushed against him, trying to break through with his strength. "I just remembered something…" Zeke said shakily. "The night the bulbins attacked, I was terrified. The only thing that kept me going was the thought that Maiya might need me. After I found her, I wanted to protect her. I failed. I failed because I wasn't strong enough." Forcing the strength into his arms, Zeke broke through the lock and pushed Link back. The sword in his hands shook uncontrollably, tears streamed from his eyes, and fear was in his eyes. "I was scared to death then, I'm scared to death now, but I can't afford to lose to you!!"

"Don't be so naïve!" Link shouted, thrusting his sword at Zeke. The sword was parried, but it moved to attack from above the prince. "Do you honestly think you can protect anyone with your sword?!" The tip of the sword nicked Zeke's chest, freeing blood to soak into his shirt. With a snarl, Link said, "You're pathetic…you can't protect anyone. You couldn't even protect someone you claim to have feelings for."

Clutching at the wound, Zeke stared at the crimson vitality that was escaping his body. It did not hurt to have his flesh scratched. The slash had been too quick for him to feel it. Yet, even as he watched the blood seep out of him, he felt little pain. "You're the pathetic one!" he cried, looking up at Link. Raising his sword, he slashed at the knight, but it was knocked away and another cut opened up on his chest. Zeke's energy flowed out of him as freely as his blood. His legs weak, he fell to his knees.

"I was wrong about you, prince," Link muttered. "You talk of protecting people, but you lack the resolve necessary. I will have nothing to do with you." After sheathing his sword, Link started walking back towards Noèlle's home.

"You…bastard…" Zeke whispered as he stared after the knight. "I will get stronger…stronger than you…stronger than Raikkus...stronger than Kai…and I will…protect those I love…"

* * *

"That should do it," Noèlle said as she finished wrapping a bandage around Zeke's torso and tying it so it would stay in place. Giving him a pat on the back, she said, "Just take it easy and wait for the wound to heal. Is there anything I can get you?"

Zeke was back in his mother's room, this time with physical wounds. The pain had been numbed for the time being, but it did not change what he had experienced. As he stared at his knees, he thought, _This is the second time I've been cut open_. He was the only one who knew it, but the two places Link had cut him were the two places Kai had cut first. With a sigh, he pushed the thought from his mind and looked at Noèlle. "Is Kenji alright?"

The woman smiled and gave a nod. "Kenji managed to get away with nothing but a couple scratches. He'll be up and about after he rests a bit." While she tried her hardest to stay cheerful, she just could not keep the smile on her face. "Zeke, you've sustained many injuries since your coming to my city. I am truly sorry for that."

"It's not your fault," Zeke mumbled. "I didn't think my words would have any consequences. I want to protect people, but I'm too weak."

At this, Noèlle frowned and gave the prince a disappointed stare. "No one is too weak to defend others, however you are too self-centered. I've seen your ambition, and it is not one that has the country's people in mind." Rising to her feet, she crossed her arms and looked away from the prince. "I hope that your quest either fails or you become enlightened," she said in a tone that said she hated what she was about to do. "In the great cathedral in the northern part of the city has a dungeon beneath it. There you will find a shard of what you are looking for." After that, she left.


End file.
